A KIND pensioner responding to a plea for 50p had her purse snatched from her hand by a woman who ran to a waiting car and was driven off.

The snatch happened as the 78-year-old victim, who walks with a stick, was making her way to the shops at Palm Bay in Cliftonville, near Margate, on Saturday at about 9.20am.

Police say the purse contained a small amount of money and the victim was not injured during the incident at the junction of Summerfield Road and Crundale Way.

The thief is aged between 24 and 27, about 5ft 6in tall, slim with short straight brown hair. She was wearing a beige jacket. It is thought that she was driven off by a man in a black Rover car.

Anyone with information should contact PC Kim Lumpkin at Margate police station on 01843 222080.