Sunderland pensioner, 90, left shaken and upset after thief snatches wallet containing £2,000 from his hands outside bank

The theft took place at 7.30am on Monday, August 17, as the elderly man waited to meet his daughter outside of the Virgin Money bank on Fawcett Street in the city centre.

A man, believed to be in his 20s, is said to have targeted the vulnerable pensioner, taking the wallet from his hands before riding away on a bike.

The man, who does not wish to be named, was not injured but has been left severely shaken.

His daughter, Audrey Brand, 58, is now urging people to be alert when visiting the city centre.

She said: "My dad is 90-years-old, has lived in Sunderland all of his life, and this is the first time this has happened to him.

"He goes into the town every Monday and waits for the shops to open from 8am to get the lottery numbers checked.

"He was waiting outside of the bank to meet me and had his card and wallet with £2,000 he wanted to put in the bank in his hand when a lad came down on his bike and snatched it."

A passerby called the police and Audrey arrived to find her father upset just 15 minutes later.

"He has got a right shock by what happened,” Audrey said.

"He does well being 90-years-old but he is really shaken and we don’t want him to lose his independence because of this.

"I want people to be aware, so that they can be on their guard.

“We are all so upset by it.”

A Northumbria Police spokesman said: “Shortly before 7.40am on Monday we received a report of a theft of a wallet from outside Virgin Money Bank on Fawcett Street, Sunderland.

“The caller states he was taking his bank card out of his wallet when a male on a bike rode past and stole the wallet, containing cards and £2000 in cash.

“Inquires are on-going and anyone with any information is asked to contact police on 101 or online, quoting log 168 170820.”

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