Police: Man mugs Elmont woman on her front steps

A man stole a purse from a 63-year-old woman as she walked up her front steps in Elmont Thursday evening.

The woman was uninjured, but the robber got away with her bag, Nassau County police said.

The robbery occurred at 10:10 p.m. as the victim entered her home on Arcadia Avenue. As the man grabbed her pocketbook, police said the woman screamed, drawing the attention of a witness who followed the man as he ran off with the bag.

But police said the witness lost the robber when the thief ran into a back yard. A checkbook, personal papers and cash were in the purse, police said.

Police said they are investigating to determine if this robbery is related to a string of purse-snatchings in Nassau, including attacks on other women earlier Thursday night near Long Island Rail Road stations in Merrick and Bellmore.

Other Nassau women have also been followed home and mugged in their driveways in incidents in October and this month. Police believe the Merrick and North Bellmore robberies may be related to these incidents.