THE terrifying moments when a 90-year-old woman was mugged and pushed to the ground by a man who stole her shopping trolley were captured on CCTV, the Daily Echo can reveal.

The thug threw the woman on to the concrete and ran off with her purse containing £15, teabags and groceries.

The brutal attack on the woman, who was left with a fractured shoulder, was filmed on security cameras near her Southampton home.

As revealed by the Daily Echo yesterday, the mugging took place in broad daylight as the woman bent over to get her keys from her bag.

The thief struck from behind, knocking her to the ground, before running off with the trolley, which also contained a carton of milk.

The woman, who lives in sheltered accommodation and has asked not to be identified, managed to climb to her feet and stumble towards a young mum who was walking with her child in a pram to get help.

She was described as being in a state of "severe shock" by police and had to be taken to South-ampton General Hospital by her daughter where she was X-rayed and the fracture was spotted.

Detectives investigating the senseless attack, which has provoked a huge response from Daily Echo readers, say that the person responsible was a white man and the victim had believed him to be a youth.

Speaking of the attack, the woman said she was grateful that her injuries were not worse.

She said: "Naturally I was very scared. I couldn't get into my home and had to have the locks changed. Thankfully it was only my shoulder that was hurt - it could have been a lot worse because I was pushed to the ground with great force."

Det Sgt Gareth Jones said: "This is the sort of thing that local people will find particularly despicable and I'm sure someone will recognise him from the images we have obtained.

"We want and need the public to help us find him. We would encourage anyone who knows or thinks they may have information about the male in these pictures to come forward immediately."

If you can help, call DC Peter Lea on 0845 045 4545, or the anonymous Crimestoppers hotline on 0800 555 111.