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Police Seek Suspect Accused Of Robbing Elderly Woman In Dunbar Twp.

DUNBAR TOWNSHIP (KDKA) -- A Fayette County family is offering a $500 reward to help catch the person who robbed their elderly mother in her home.

The 92-year-old victim has lived in the same home in Dunbar Township for more than 50 years.

She was home alone before noon on Tuesday when a man wearing a mask, dark sunglasses and gloves came in through an unlocked side door, surprising her as she was watching television. The door was unlocked because the woman was expecting a visit from one of her daughters.

The victim agreed to talk to KDKA, but we are not identifying her for her safety.

"He said, 'I won't hurt you, just give me your money.' I said, 'I don't have any," the victim said. "I said, 'There's a little but in that cupboard over there.'"

The suspect then forced the woman into the basement, ripped a telephone from the wall, and went upstairs where he pried loose a small safe from a nightstand. The safe contained family heirlooms.

Sheila Galliete, the victim's daughter, told KDKA-TV's Ralph Iannotti, "She had her great-grandmother's earrings, they were opal and pearl. She had a couple of diamond rings; her wedding ring."

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The suspect left through the front door carrying the safe with him. He may have gotten into a car with an accomplice.

While the victim couldn't describe the suspect's facial appearance, she said he was of medium build.

She said he was wearing either a navy blue or black color sweatshirt with white lettering in front and the numbers 9003 on the back.

William Warrick, who lives next door to the victim and knows her well, said the suspect must be heartless and cold-blooded.

"I'd like to see him caught, and hung up by his toenails," Warrick said. "The ACLU wouldn't like that, but that's the way I feel about it. "They should take him out in the woods, tie him to a tree, and let him sit there."

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