Police are investigating the mugging of a 67-year-old woman who was attacked in broad daylight while walking down a Sliema road as a thief snatched her necklace and threw her to the ground.

She started screaming for help and the neighbours ran out to see what happened

The mugging took place at 3.46pm on Tuesday in Sir Luigi Camilleri Street and was caught on a closed circuit TV camera.

The 14-second clip was uploaded on You Tube on the same day and immediately went viral on Facebook, with people condemning the violent act and publishing stills asking whether anyone recognised the assailant.

The footage shows the woman, wearing a pink top and black trousers, carrying a white bag. A man wearing a black top and trousers with a thin white stripe and sunglasses on his head is seen following her.

He then runs up to the woman, puts his hand around her neck, grabbing the necklace and pulling it, and drags her onto the road. The necklace breaks and the woman falls on the tarmac as the mugger runs off.

A relative said the mugger took a gold necklace with a diamond cross. “He left her lying on the ground.” The woman was bruised and suffering from shock. The family is offering a reward for information that would lead to the arrest of the mugger. When contacted, the police media unit confirmed that a report had been filed. Officers went on site to “initiate investigations”.

So far, investigations have failed to reap results and “are still ongoing”, the police said. They urged anyone with any information about the case to dial 119, 2122 4001-9 or go to the nearest police station.

The video can be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=1IHZlDezDO4 .

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