Jail for this tattoo-faced robber who grabbed handbag off the shoulder of 63-year-old woman in Scarborough

Edward Grange, 55, crept up on the woman in the street and made a grab for the shoulder strap on her handbag as the victim shouted “Get off me”.

But Grange grabbed the bag and was off like a shot, York Crown Court heard.

In Court: These people were sentenced by Scarborough magistrates in mid-February

The victim - who described Grange as a “frightening-looking man” - was “terribly shocked”, said prosecutor Paul Nicholson.

“She ran to two couples nearby (and) asked them to call the police,” he added.

“The bag contained Halifax bank cards, a bus pass, a TV licence card, the keys to (the victim’s) flat and about £50 in notes.”

The handbag was later discovered in a bin near the scene following a tip-off by a passer-by.

Police analysed CCTV coverage of the attack and soon identified Grange, who has a long criminal record dating back over 40 years.

He was arrested and taken in for questioning but told police he was living in a shelter and was asleep at the time of the robbery.

Grange had moved to Scarborough from Bridlington just a few days before the robbery.

He appeared to enter his plea via video link on Monday and finally admitted the robbery. The Crown moved straight to sentence.

Mr Nicholson said the victim was out shopping when she spotted a “frightening-looking man” on the other side of the road.

“She walked into a street in Scarborough, near a school, and noticed him behind her,” he added.

“She had her shopping bags in her hand (when Grange attacked her).”

The court heard Grange had 35 previous convictions for 83 offences dating back to the late 1970s - including burglary, shoplifting, heroin possession, assaulting an emergency worker, threats to kill, serious violence, affray and public disorder.

He had been in and out of prison for years and served his last, albeit short, prison sentences for burglary and shop thefts in October and December last year.

Mr Nicholson said the victim in Scarborough was “very shaken” by the incident on February 1 this year.

She said Grange was “very violent (and) very persistent” while trying to snatch her bag.

“It left me fearful of leaving the house,” she added.

Defence barrister Charlotte Baines said that Grange, of no fixed abode, was in the grip of drug addiction at the time and had “spiralled somewhat out of control” following the death of his long-term partner which led to him losing his home and moving to Scarborough.

Judge Sean Morris jailed Grange for 27 months, of which he will serve half behind bars before becoming eligible for parole.