‘YOU MESSED WITH THE WRONG GRAN!’
93-year-old’s message to the muggers she fought off
A 93-YEAR-OLD gran who fought off two would-be muggers when they tried to steal her handbag has declared: “They messed with the wrong one!”
Eva Jones was waiting for the bus into Oldham to get a birthday card and some knitting supplies when she was attacked from behind.
The thugs tried to grab her handbag - which contained less than £10 – on Turf Lane, Chadderton, shortly before midday on August 16.
But Eva, who has three children, eight grandchildren and 11 greatgrandchildren, refused to let go.
In the struggle that followed, she was thrown backwards onto the floor, slamming her head on the pavement and hurling her shoes into the road.
As onlookers rushed to Eva’s aid, the attackers fled empty-handed.
Police issued an appeal for information and, the next day, a 17-year-old boy handed himself in and confessed. He pleaded guilty to attempted robbery at Tameside Youth Court on Tuesday and will be sentenced later this month.
Magistrates rejected an application made by the M.E.N. and Press Association to lift reporting restrictions on naming the teenager.
Det Sgt Alex Wilkinson, who is leading the ongoing investigation into the attack on Eva, said it was ‘violent and cowardly’ and ‘could have had graver consequences’ if not for her ‘remarkable strength.’
But defiant Eva said she will not let the incident change her active lifestyle. She told the M.E.N.: “I’m not intimidated by much - that’s probably true.
“I just thought ‘there’s no way, they’re not having my bag!’
“I didn’t see much. I’m only halfsighted anyway. But when they let go of my bag, I fell back on the floor and hit my head.
“Bus drivers stopped the traffic and some builders went off to chase them. I remember I was moaning on the floor and I did think, ‘I’m not going to survive this.’”
Eva was left with appalling bruising all over her body and doctors were so concerned about her head injury that they ran brain scans.
Fortunately, she was able to leave hospital the next day but spent the next two weeks living at her son Tony’s house under his full-time care.
Now, her protective family have allowed her to return to her flat in Chadderton and get back to reading her Kindle, tackling the cryptic crossword and tending to her beautiful garden.
Eva is even hoping for first prize in the First Choice Homes Garden competition.
“I’ve still got an egg on my head,” she said. “And my hip hurts. I can’t get comfortable to sleep.
“I’ve not been back out on my own yet, but I could.
“I’m getting to feel sorry for them. They probably thought it was going to be a quick steal - they wouldn’t have anticipated all this.
“They messed with the wrong one!”