An elderly woman was recovering in hospital today after being dragged out of her bed in her Belfast home and bundled downstairs by a burglar.
The 84-year-old pensioner was asleep in her home in the Ormeau Road area of south Belfast when a man entered her bedroom.
He pulled the terrified woman downstairs before stealing a small sum of money from inside a birthday card. She was extremely shaken by the ordeal and suffered injuries to her wrists and hands.
Police said the burglar, who made off in a silver Jeep-type vehicle, spoke with a southern accent.
Dr Alasdair McDonnell, deputy leader of the SDLP, said he was disgusted by this latest attack on a vulnerable person. "It is scandalous that an 84-year-old woman or indeed anyone has to go through something like this. People are entitled to able to sleep in bed in safety.
"I would urge anyone in the community, who has any idea who is doing this, to go to the police with any information they have," he added.