Police are appealing for witnesses after a man tried to snatch a four-year-old girl from her grandmother in Forest Gate.

The incident happened on Friday after a 60-year-old woman collected her grand-daughter from a local nursery.

At approximately 3.45pm as they were walking along Osborne Road a man approached them from behind. He grabbed hold of the child’s hand and tried to pull the young girl away from her grandmother.

A short struggle ensued during which the man continued to try and separate the woman from her grand-daughter. The woman shouted out for help at which point the man ran away towards Woodgrange Road, Forest Gate.

Neither of the victims suffered any injury during the incident.

The suspect is described as a dark skinned Asian man, in his late thirties. He had short black hair, approximately 5ft 9ins tall and was of a chubby build. He was wearing a plain navy blue t-shirt, jeans and trainers. During the incident he spoke in Urdu.

Anyone with information is asked to contact DC Grabowski in the Violent Crime Unit on (020) 7275 5851. Or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 if you want to stay anonymous.