A KENTON have-a-go-hero chased two thieves who swiped hundreds of pounds from a “distressed” pensioner last week.

George Frangeskou, of Boxmoor Road, was visiting his inlaws when he saw the pair with their victim, a Somali man who he believes was in his 80s and spoke little English.

He said: “The first thing I saw when I looked up were these three people, and the old man was looking very distressed, screaming out for help.

“He was saying 'money, money'. At first I didn't know what to make of him because I didn't know if he was actually for real or if there was a misunderstanding.

“When I realised he had been a victim I just lost it and gave chase. How can people do things like this?”

The 40-year-old father of two said the pair walked away, ignoring the man's cries of “please help”, and when the younger thief, a man aged around 20, got to the corner he started running away.

Mr Frangeskou said: “I managed to collar him. He was saying 'please please'. I said 'you took his money, give him his money back right now.”

The youth denied having the cash but Mr Frangeskou said he saw his accomplice, a woman who looked old enough to be his mother at around 40, running back to the scene, in Wykeham Road.

He said she produced a book of cash, claiming to have found the pensioner's money.

The 6ft 3inch sales consultant said: “She was saying, 'I found his money, I found his money'. I thought 'yeah right'. She said 'I never took it, I never took it'. We got the money for the guy – I counted it.”

The thieves stole £500, at around 4.30pm on Thursday, in broad daylight, which the pensioner withdrew from a nearby Abbey cash machine.

All of it was returned except for around £20.

Mr Frangeskou, who works in Canning Road, Wealdstone, said: “It's a thing of the moment I guess, a natural instinct. You start to think about situations like that afterwards.

“I think there's so much crime going on now. Wealdstone is such a no go area, with kids and adults that are just looking for crime and the elderly are being targeted.”

Anyone with information on a crime can contact police on 0203 123 1212, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.