Police are hunting for three people who tricked an elderly widow into thinking they were lost before stealing her life-savings.
The 86-year-old woman was shopping in Waitrose when two men and a woman distracted her, stole her bank card and used it to buy £21,000 worth of cars and food.
The three suspects watched the woman enter her PIN number at the till before following her outside the store on Balham High Road.
One told her he spoke little English and pretended to be lost with a map, whilst another suspect stole her bank card from her pocket.
The card was then used to withdraw cash, buy clothing, visit a fast food restaurant and purchase six second-hand cars.
The victim had saved the money all her life for her grandchildren and is now too terrified to use her bank card in public.
CCTV of the suspects shows a white woman in her 40s wearing glasses, a black and white head scarf and a dark coat over a white blouse; a slim built Asian man in his 20s in a dark hooded top with a fur hood and dark jeans and white trainers; and a medium built Asian man in his late 30s wearing a dark hooded top with a light blue liner and white zipped front.
Wandsworth police are investigating the theft. A spokesman said: “The theft has had a significant impact on the victim, leading her to change her usual routine. She is also afraid to get her bank card out anywhere in public.
“It is believed to have occurred between 10:38am and 12:20pm on March 17. Police are keen to hear from anyone who may recognise the people shown in the CCTV or who witnessed the incident."
Anyone with any information is asked to contact officers in Wandsworth via 101, quoting reference 0306003.
