A YOUNG woman was pushed to the ground and pulled across the floor by an assailant who made off with her wallet.

The 21-year-old was walking along Greetham Street in Portsmouth at about 9.30pm on Thursday when a man approached her.

He grabbed her bag and they struggled before the woman fell to the floor, still holding it.

She was then pulled across the pavement by the man and into the street, still refusing to let go of her bag.

At that point the man put his hand into her bag and took her wallet before fleeing across Greetham Street and over the railway bridge.

The victim suffered a graze to her right elbow in the attack.

Her assailant is described as white, aged 20 to 30, about 6ft and of medium build, with small curls in his hair.

He was wearing a patterned scarf which covered most of his face, a dark coloured duffel-style coat which came down to his waste and dark coloured trousers.

Her wallet is described as black leather with a zip around the middle and tassels.

Items inside include ID cards, bank cards, £30 in cash and Chinese currency.

Detective Constable Katie Wakefield, said: “We are appealing for witnesses that may have seen this man in the city centre before the robbery, or saw him running away from the scene afterwards. "We would also like to speak to anyone who may have found any discarded items that could have been from the victims’ wallet. If you do have any information, please come and speak to us.”

Anyone with any information is asked to contact Eastern CID at Fratton police station by calling 101 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 anonymously.