An elderly woman suffered cuts to her upper lip after she challenged a man that allegedly tried to break into her house.

At around 10.16pm on Saturday, February 12, the victim, a woman in her 80s, heard a noise at the front of her house in Herbert Road, High Wycombe.

She went outside and saw a man putting a ladder up against the front of the property.

The woman challenged the man, who stated he was looking for a cat.

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After being disturbed, he eventually escaped.

The man has been described as an Asian or mixed-race man of slim build and around 5ft 7ins tall.

He had dark hair and was wearing a blue surgical face mask that covered his nose and mouth, whilst wearing a dark-coloured hooded top and dark combat or jogger style trousers.

The victim suffered small cuts to her upper lip, which did not require treatment, and no property was stolen.

Detective Chief Inspector Quoc Vo said: “This was a frightening ordeal for the victim, but thankfully, she did not suffer any serious injuries and alerted police to the incident quickly.

“I would like to appeal to the public to see if they are missing a ladder.

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“I would encourage anyone to call 999 if you suspect an incident taking place and do not intervene.

"Your safety is a priority.

“I would, however, praise the victim for her swift actions and would appeal to anybody who was in the area last night between 10pm and 10.30pm to contact Thames Valley Police if you witnessed the incident.

“I would also appeal to anybody with dash-cam, doorbell cam or CCTV footage in the area to please check this and get in touch if it has captured anything that can help this investigation.

“You can make a report online or call 101, quoting reference 43220066521.

“Alternatively, you can also call the independent charity Crimestoppers 100 per cent anonymously on 0800 555 111.”