Thieves smash 98-year-old woman's mobility scooter before abandoning it at a Kirkby park

Eva King, 98, had her scooter stolen from her bungalow on Oak Street, Kirkby, on Sunday, July 15, which has now been recovered from Kingsway Park, Kirkby.

The scooter has been damaged to the point that it cannot be repaired and the handle has been “snapped off.”

Mandy King, 45, her granddaughter has said she is “disgusted” that someone would destroy it.

Mandy who lives on Forest Road, Mansfield said: “It is a disgrace - I have a scooter myself, I know how I would have felt if it happened to me.

“It is a write-off the handle bar has been bent so far forward it has been snapped off.

“It was found smashed up.

“I couldn’t believe it - they had smashed up the casing.”

Mandy also said that her grandmother was getting ready to go out when the thieves hit.

She said: “They must have known that it was a old persons bungalow - you can tell.

“Her handbag was on the scooter with around £100 in it and we haven’t got that back.

“She struggles to walk and has to use it to go places and visit her sister who is sick.”

Eva has now been given Mandy’s best scooter to get around and Mandy is now using her travel one.

Inspector Glenn Longden said: “This was a heartless theft of a vehicle which this elderly victim relied upon. Our investigation is ongoing and we’re following a number of lines of enquiry.

"We’re appealing to anyone who saw anything or who has any information which could help us with our enquiries to call us on 101, quoting incident number 594 of 15 July 2018, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.”

A Nottinghamshire Police spokesman said: "We’re appealing for witnesses and information after a mobility scooter was stolen from a 98-year-old woman in Kirkby-In-Ashfield.

"It was stolen from the woman’s front garden in Oak Street between 12.30pm and 4.35pm on Sunday (15 July 2018). Her handbag, which was inside the scooter and which contained a quantity of cash, was also taken.

"Her scooter was later found smashed up at a park."

Images to follow.