A THIEF walked into a 98-year-old woman’s home demanding money for work he had not done and left with £200 in cash.

The man, described as white, in his fifties, 6ft tall and wearing blue overalls, opened the front door to her Hammerwood Road home in Ashurst Wood, near East Grinstead, at around 12.50pm on Thursday, November 19.

He claimed he was owed £10 for work outside the house but this had not taken place. She told him to fetch her handbag from another room and he left with £200 in cash.

Police officers carried out house to house enquiries and discovered a man had called at a nearby house the day before the incident.

He told a resident her hedge needed cutting and he had done work for her in the past, which he had not, and the woman closed the door on him, police said. This man was described as white, aged between 20 and 30 with light brown curly hair.

Detective constable Heidi McCall said: "We believe these two incidents could be linked and would like to hear from anyone who saw something suspicious in the area.”

Anyone with information should call 101 quoting 0665 of 19/11.