A 58-year-old woman out walking her dog had a carrier bag snatched from her hand - but all the thief ended up with was a bagful of dog mess.

The woman, who does not want to be identified, was walking home on Friday evening when the incident happened in Edmunds Road, Banbury.

Thinking that her purse might be in the bag, the snatch thief, aged about 13 or 14, grabbed the bag and ran off.

But all that was in it were the smelly offerings from her pet.

She said: "I always collect the mess up in a carrier bag, take it home and dump it in the bin. "This young lad, about 13 or 14, ran up behind me, grabbed the bag and made off.

"I was very shocked and it took a few minutes before the funny side sank in."

"I gave the police a ring just to let them know there was a bag snatcher on the loose.

"The thief must have had a nasty shock when he looked inside." she added.

"I expect he was hoping my purse was in it or something like that."

The woman said at least the theft saved her the trouble of disposing the bag and its contents at home. "I hope it teaches him a lesson," she said.

Police spokesman David Campbell said: "This is one item of stolen property that we definitely do not want handed in."

Story date: Wednesday 10 November

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.