AN elderly Cork woman who was attacked by two men in her home on Wednesday night was recovering from serious facial injuries, including a broken nose, at the Cork University Hospital yesterday.
Gardai have appealed for any information from the public concerning what they described as one of the worst attacks on an elderly person in the city.
Ms Winnie O'Keeffe, who lived alone at The Orchards, Glasheen Road, is thought to have survived only by feigning unconsciousness. It is believed that her attackers were in the house for almost four hours.
Speaking from her hospital bed last night, Ms O'Keeffe described the attack: "I thought it was the butcher coming with the meat and so I opened the door. Then they burst in on top of me - all they could talk about was the money.
"I told them it was in the Munster and Leinster Bank. There were two of them, one of them was about 6 feet tall, they were big fellows and they definitely spoke with Northern Ireland accents. I fell to the ground during the struggle during which they were hitting me, and I decided the best thing to do was to pretend that I was unconscious.
"Then they started searching all the rooms while I was lying there. I didn't really feel any pain at that stage but I was very frightened by it all. Usually, at that time of night, I would have my Telecom alarm on, but that night I didn't."
Det Insp Kieran McGann, who is leading the investigation, said the two attackers, aged between 20 and 30, knocked at Ms O'Keeffe's door at about 8 p.m. one Wednesday.
Ms O'Keeffe, according to neighbours, thinking that it was her local butcher, Mr Jerry Browne, called out, "Is that you, Jerry?" When one of the men replied yes, she opened the door to allow him in.
Having bundled Ms O'Keeffe into the hallway, they systematically ransacked every room in the house, searching for money, and when they failed to find any, they beat her with their fists, leaving her face a bloodied mess. The furniture in the house was strewn around after the attack. Yesterday, it was being examined by forensic experts.
When Ms O'Keeffe pretended to be unconscious, the two men left the house at about 11.30 p.m., and she managed to raise the alarm by contacting her nearest neighbour, Mr Dan Harte, a retired garda.
When she called to the house, Mr Harte's son, David, answered the door and was only able to recognise Ms O'Keeffe by her cardigan. Blood was streaming down her face and her eyes and forehead were badly disfigured.
Mr Harte said he visited Ms O'Keeffe in hospital yesterday and she appeared to be slightly improved after her ordeal.
Mr Denis O'Connell, another neighbour, said that nobody in the quiet area heard or saw anything.
Gardai said one of the men wore a grey boiler suit and the other was dressed in dark clothing. It is believed that the attackers knew precisely which house to go to and that, they had been watching Ms O'Keeffe's movements for some time.
"Somebody in the neighbourhood may have seen these two men prior to the attack. If anyone can assist the Garda with information, however slight, they should contact Togher Garda station at 021-96211 or any other station.
"This was a particularly vicious attack and one of a number of similar ones in the recent past. We want to assure the public, however, that we are doing everything we can to stamp out these incidents", Det McGann said.