A TINY thief and his mum struck for the second time in three days, committing another distraction burglary against a pensioner.

As reported in last week's Citizen, the pair struck at the Morecambe home of an 85-year-old woman and stole her handbag.

On that occasion the boy went to the woman's door and said his mother wanted to talk to her. He then sneaked into the house.

And the pair struck again at the home of an 80-year-old woman in Lancaster's Barton Road between 4pm and 5pm last Wednesday.

This time the thieves said they had lost an earring in the garden - and while the woman was helping them search, the boy went into the house and stole a handbag.

He is described as between seven and nine, with short hair. The woman is said to be between 30 and 40.

"The previous descriptions were of a woman in her later 20s or early 30s and the boy was thought to be about 10," says DS Sean Carthy, of Lancaster police.

"But it is clear that the two crimes are linked because the descriptions are similar and the crime is almost identical.

"It is callous on two counts. Firstly against the victims and secondly it is callous to exploit a child in this way.

"It is vital that we catch these people before they can strike again. At this stage we do not know if they are locals or criminals who have travelled into the area. But either way we have made this a priority."

To help police, call 01524-63333 or Crimestoppers in confidence on 0800-555111.