Woman, 92, traumatised by ‘callous’ attack in Dalston
Clive Watt - Credit: Archant
A thief who launched a “callous and cowardly attack”, stealing the purse of a 92-year-old woman as she tried to board a bus and leaving her traumatised to this day, has been jailed.
Clive Watt, 54 of Retreat Place, Homerton, stole the purse, which contained £70, from the victim’s jacket pocket and ran off, as she was at a bus stop in Kingsland High Street, Dalston, on Monday April 25.
Officers from the Met’s roads and transport policing command found CCTV footage showing Watt standing near the bus stop, as several buses pass by.
He is then seen paying a lot of attention to the victim, walking close to her a few times, and pushing himself between crowds of people to get close to her as her bus arrives.
Watt was arrested a few days after the incident, when he was stopped for an unrelated incident and officers identified him from the CCTV.
Pc Matt Poore said: “A 92-year-old woman was left traumatised by Watts’s actions and to this day she feels fearful of leaving her home.
“I hope this sentence brings some comfort to her and she is able to regain her confidence of being able to travel on her own again.”
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Watt was sentenced to six months in jail after pleading guilty to theft at Thames Magistrates’ Court on Monday May 23, and ordered to pay a victim £70 compensation.
Steve Burton TfL’s Director of Enforcement and On-Street Operations, said: “This was a callous and cowardly attack against a vulnerable bus passenger.
“We will not tolerate behaviour that is illegal or makes our customers feel unsafe and we will continue to work closely with the police to investigate, track-down and punish those caught, with a strong focus on pushing for the toughest penalties available.”
