£5,000 Reward Offered To Find Woman Who Strangled Pensioner With Dog Lead
18 August 2017, 12:40 | Updated: 22 August 2017, 09:52
A £5,000 reward has been offered to find and convict the cruel person who strangled an 82-year-old woman with a dog lead at her home in south London.
Catherine Smith was left with shocking injuries following the brutal attack in Lambeth on Thursday 27th July.
The pensioner was on her mobility scooter when she saw the suspect at the Palace Road Nature Gardens in Streatham.
The woman then followed her home, shouting "Where’s Tracy?" and repeatedly asking for money.
The suspect then rang the doorbell and asked Catherine if she could use her toilet.
When Catherine said no, the suspect aggressively pushed open the front door, causing Catherine to fall backwards and hit her head.
The suspect then grabbed the victim’s dog lead, wrapped it round her neck and started to strangle her.
The 82-year-old was left with serious injuries and taken to west London hospital.
The suspect is described as a black woman, about 5ft 5ins tall, of slim build, with slick backed black hair.
She was wearing a khaki coloured zipped coat, multi-coloured trainers and tights.
Det Con Vicky Vincent described the attack as “vicious and unprovoked”.
She said: “We believe the suspect spotted Catherine in Palace Road Nature Gardens and for unknown reasons decided to follow her home, harass her and then brutally assault her.
"We are still appealing for anyone with information or any witnesses to contact us as a matter of urgency so we can bring the person responsible for this heinous crime to justice."
To pass on information completely anonymously or to qualify for the reward, contact the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.
Alternatively, anyone with information or any witnesses can also contact Lambeth CID on 07785774447, 101 or Tweet @MetCC.
