A reporter whose bike was stolen while she cycled home from work is to meet the man who attacked her.

Eleanore Robinson, from the Hackney Gazette, says she was shaken by the attack and wants the criminal to know the consequences of his actions.

She was cycling through a park when the man pushed her off her bike and then stole it.

Police were able to catch the thug after his DNA was taken from a drinks can he left at the scene.

Eleanore said: “I was standing in the middle of a park screaming, with tears streaming down my face, trying to comprehend what had just happened to me.

“He admitted to it but his story was that he was drunk and didn’t even remember doing it.

“He has said he wants to speak to me to apologise so the police are arranging for us to meet up.

“He didn’t hurt me but I was very shaken. Luckily I’ve now got my bike back.”

After the attack, Eleanore wrote a first-person account of what had happened for the Hackney Gazette, describing the shock of the attack and the lasting impact it has had on her.

In it she wrote: “Being attacked in such a random way makes no sense. Why did he pick on me of all people? What did I do wrong?

“My armour that lets me walk around the streets of London, built up after many years of living in the capital, has been ripped off.

“I now have to move if someone stands to close to me at the bus stop or I flinch if someone seems to be looking at me when before I would be flattered.

“Or if a stranger tries to talk to me, I automatically take a step back, clutching my bag at the same time so they can’t steal it.

“I would love for him to know the consequences of his actions.”

Comments

Sarah Cosgrove (05/08/2008 10:27:58)
Eleanore
Don’t worry, you’ll get your armour back, or most of it anyway. A similar thing happened to me after I was mugged in Hackney by two boys on bikes who penned me against a wall threatening me and demanding I hand over all my stuff.
After that I was scared of all boys on bikes who had the same ethnicity (which made me feel awful) and scared to walk around like I used to.
But so long as you try to act normally, the confidence slowly returns. Good luck!

Jack Grove (05/08/2008 12:15:46)
Get a grip for God’s sake! You were pushed off your bike by a drunk who then nicked your cycle – unpleasant, no doubt, but as a local reporter, who has probably seen some bad stuff happen to the public, I’d expect you have a bit more perspective about the whole incident.You escaped unhurt from the “attack” – you should be grateful that you’re OK and you even got you’re bike back.
As for your “armour”- please – Move on and get back on your bike and leave this sad drunk to his pathetic life. Don’t bother explaining to him what a nervous wreck you’ve become. Just get on with it

Susan (07/08/2008 10:24:17)
Jack, you make it sound like Eleanore is the one in the wrong. For a man to push a person off a moving bike is most definitely an attack. As a victim she has the right to feel any damn way she pleases. Good luck to you Eleanore, but whatever ‘reasons’ this guy gives, don’t expect too much sense. You can rise above this.