A TEENAGE girl who “devastated” the life of an elderly woman she mugged in the street has walked free from court.

The 14-year-old, whose cannot be named for legal reasons, ambushed 90-year-old Joyce Sieminski as she tried to open the front door of her home in Marsh Road, Pinner, snatching her purse and sending her crashing to the ground.

Mrs Sieminski fractured her hip when she fell, and she spent six weeks in hospital and four weeks in a care home recovering from the attack, which she says has robbed her of her independence.

At the girl's sentencing hearing this morning at Harrow Crown Court, Judge Susan Tapping was handed a letter from Mrs Sieminski outlining the effect on her life the mugging has had.

She now has to walk with a frame, she struggles to carry out basic tasks like cooking food and getting dressed, and is reliant on friends and family to get out of the house.

Mrs Sieminski, who before the attack lived a fully independent life, told the court she now suffers from depression and anxiety, and frequently has nightmares about the incident.

The 14-year-old girl, from Tottenham, pounced on the defenceless pensioner on October 9 last year in the middle of the day after two accomplices had distracted Mrs Sieminski.

However, she was chased by a member of the public and caught hiding in the bushes in the garden of a house in Eastcote Road.

Judge Tapping, sentencing, said: “You may not have intended the devastating consequences to the victim, but the victim was clearly targeted because she was elderly, and these risks are inherent when you chose an elderly victim like this.

“If you were older and if I had the power to do so, I would punish you severely for what you did.

“If you can't change your ways, and you are caught doing something like this again, I can only assume the courts will deal with you substantially more seriously next time.”

Judge Tapping added that Mrs Sieminski's impact statement made for “very sad reading indeed”, but given the girl's age, she was only able to sentence her to an 18-month supervision order.

The girl, a Bulgarian national, had only moved to the UK in July last year, and had already been cautioned twice by police for similar mugging incidents, including one on an elderly woman, before the attack on Mrs Sieminski.

She spent almost five months in custody waiting for sentencing, and left court with her uncle after the hearing.