They tore off my rings, says peer

A Labour peer told today of her terror when a mugger ambushed her near her home in Islington and ripped her rings from her fingers.

Lady Dean of Thornton-Le-Fylde, 58, former general secretary of print union Sogat, was attacked after parking her car outside her house in Malvern Terrace at about 7.20pm on Tuesday.

She said: "I was aware of the increase in street crime and I made a point of looking up and down the road. Everything seemed clear and I only had a few steps to walk. Then I saw this young man walking towards me."

Lady Dean said the attacker blocked her way as she tried to enter the wrought-iron gate at the front of her house. "He screamed at me 'Give me your rings! Give me your rings!'. I screamed back and said no. The guy got hold of my left hand and ripped my wedding and engagement rings off," she told the Daily Telegraph.

Police said they are hunting a black man aged about 20, of slim build, about 5ft 9in tall, in connection with the robbery.

Lady Dean, who was laden down with a computer and a brief case when she was attacked, suffered an injured hand and was left badly shaken.