A 26-year-old woman was knocked to the ground and her bag snatched as she walked through an Oxford cemetery.

She was walking through St James’s graveyard, off Church Hill Road, Cowley, when a man came up behind her and grabbed her handbag, causing her to fall over.

A police spokesman said: "The force of the attack broke the strap of the handbag and the woman received minor grazes to her knees from the fall.

"At some point, the attacker made eye contact with the victim, at which point he swore, dropped the bag and ran off."

The attack happened at 1pm on Tuesday.

The man was wearing a dark cap and a hooded top with the hood up. He was white, in his early twenties, approximately 5ft 8in tall and of an athletic build.

PC Steve Martin, of the priority crime team, said: “The attack happened on the direct route between Rose Hill and Cowley Centre so there could have been people around at the time who saw something.

“I particularly want to speak to anyone who saw a man matching the description in the Church Hill Road area around the time.

“I am speaking to eyewitnesses and pursuing all lines of enquiry.”

If you have any information about this incident, please call the 24-hour non-emergency number, 0845 8 505 505. If you don’t want to speak to police or give your name, call the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.