Police are appealing for witnesses after an attempted robbery in Magdalen Street, Oxford.

A 61-year-old woman was approached by a man at 11.15am yesterday holding a map and asking for directions.

He encouraged the woman to come closer to look at the map, and as she did two other men approached her from behind, one of whom grabbed her arm and tried to shake her purse out from under her arm.

Alarmed, the woman spun round and fought back.

All three men then ran off. Nothing was taken, and no injuries were sustained.

The man with the map was described as being in his early twenties, white, of medium build and having a broken eastern European accent. He was approximately 5ft 9in tall and wearing a grey sweatshirt and blue jeans.

The two other men are described as having darker skin and dark hair. They are believed to be in their forties.

Det Sgt, Steve Raffield said: “A personal attack alarm may be useful for situations like this. It will alert people who may be able to help and is also likely to cause the offender to run off.

“If you are attacked, try to get a description of the attacker (age, sex, race, hair and eye colour, height, build, clothing, tattoos etc) and call the police immediately on 999.”

Det Sgt Raffield is keen to speak to witnesses of this attempted robbery.

He added: “If you have any information regarding this incident, please call 0845 8 505 505, the 24-hour Thames Valley Police non-emergency number. If you don’t want to speak to police or give your name, please call the Crimestoppers charity anonymously on 0800 555 111.”