ELDERLY people are being warned to be on their guard after an 83-year-old woman was robbed.

She was stopped by two young women in an alleyway leading into Dallas Brett Crescent, Folkestone. The pair asked for directions but when they walked off the pensioner realised her purse, containing cash and cards, had disappeared from the top of her handbag.

The first offender is white and described by her victim as fresh faced. She is 18 or 19, about 5ft 5ins, slim or skinny with light coloured shoulder length straggly hair. She was wearing a blue top.

The second offender is also white, aged between 20 and 22, 5ft to 5ft 2ins tall with a larger frame than her accomplice. She has a round face and straight brown hair in a bob style, falling just over her ears. She was wearing a dark coat.

PC Alison Norris said: "This was a despicable and cowardly crime committed against a vulnerable member of our community. I would urge people with elderly relatives to pass on our advice not to carry large amounts of cash with them, walk on footpaths overlooked by houses or roads and keep purses and wallets in pockets instead of bags.

"I would also like to hear from anyone who knows the identity of these women so they can be brought to justice." PC Norris can be contacted on 01303 850055.