“I know crime is down, but I feel that, certainly in my area, there seems to be more and more bag snatches and muggings.

“To be quite honest, a daytime attack like this is despicable — the thief must have no conscience at all.”

Councillor Wright added that she would advise elderly people to take precautions such as walking in public places and keeping valuables out of sight.

Deputy Lord Provost Ian Borthwick, a veteran campaigner for the elderly who lives near the scene of the crime, said he believed the seeming increase in attacks on the elderly was connected to drug abuse.

“The area is a quiet residential area with a significant number of older people residing within it,” he said. “Offences of this nature — and there have been a few of them recently — cause a great deal of concern. I have no doubt the majority of these are drug-fuelled.

“I think it is deplorable that someone could prey on the most vulnerable members of society. It must cause absolute disgust in the minds of all right-thinking members of society.

“I would urge anyone with information to contact the police. I would also advise anyone out there to avoid carrying significant sums of money on their person.”

Mr Borthwick said it appeared the victim may have been targeted as she came from the post office.

He said, “That is a worrying trend, and I would urge people to be careful.”

Meanwhile, another Coldside councillor, Jimmy Black, said the Hill Street incident would impact on the whole community.

“I am completely outraged that such a thing should happen,” he said. “I suppose there will always be crimes like this where people prey on the vulnerable members of our community, but this was a despicable crime.

“The effect of a crime like this is that people stay in their houses and become isolated and frightened, and that’s a really sad consequence.”