Burglars have carried out a series of raids on pensioners' homes in Northern Ireland, it emerged this morning.
Gangs of thieves ransacked three houses, leaving their victims either injured or traumatised, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said.
A 92-year-old woman was shaken by one of five men who kicked in her back door of her property in Lisburn, Co Antrim last night. The intruders searched through the house on Bellevue Park before escaping with cash.
In Tandragee, Co Armagh, a woman aged 78 was left with a cut face after being held down by thieves. Up to six men wearing balaclavas broke into her home on the Portadown Road, rifling through drawers and stealing money. The woman is the former mayor of Armagh, councillor Heather Black.
An elderly couple were also targeted by raiders at their home in Lurgan, Co Armagh. An 80-year-old man who answered the door to four men was pushed back and held in a seat along with his 74-year-old wife. Their home on the Banbridge Road was ransacked and cash taken. The couple were said to be badly shaken by their ordeal.
Meanwhile, armed robbers threatened a postmistress with a sawn-off shotgun in Co Fermanagh, police said. Two masked men went into the Post Office at Killadeas Road, Enniskillen yesterday and demanded money. The woman hit an alarm button and the robbers fled.