Elderly Malabar woman sends panga-wielding attacker running

A 79-year-old Malabar woman managed to overpower a panga-wielding robber who broke into her home during the early hours of Monday morning.

Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said the woman, who lives alone, was confronted inside her Agapanthus Road home in Malabar at about 3.40am.

Police have declined to release the woman’s name for her own protection.

“According to information, an intruder gained entry into the house by breaking the lock to the sliding door while the elderly woman was asleep,” she said.

“The woman was woken up by the noise and when she turned the bedroom light on, the man was standing in her room with a panga.”

Naidu said a struggle ensued and the woman managed to overpower the attacker, forcing him to run away, dropping the panga.

“After he fled, police were alerted. It however appears that the suspect was inside the house for some time as parts of the house had already been ransacked,” she said.

“Food items and a camera that were taken from the house, were later found in the garden. It is suspected that the suspect fled empty handed.”

Naidu said the woman did not sustain any injuries during the attack.

A case of house robbery is under investigation.