Authorities say the man walked up to the woman just after 8 p.m. in Mott Haven, grabbed her jacket and ran off eastbound on East 149th Street toward Bergen Avenue.
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Police say the jacket contained $380 in cash.
It was unseasonably warm Monday, so Elma Almonte took off the overcoat she was wearing and folded it over her arm. That's when police say a man snatched it away from her.
"He pulled it away forcefully," Almonte said. "If it wasn't so fast I would have been able to hold on to it."
But the 88-year-old didn't give up easily. She took off after him, up the block and around the corner. She had to.
"$380, $380 that was for the rent," Almonte said.
She stopped a block away, asked if someone saw the suspect run by and then called the police.
She told them she believes the thief followed her from the ATM and that's why he robbed her.
"They need to arrest him, but when they do, they shouldn't let him go, he needs to stay in jail so he can pay the for what he did," Almonte said.
Police released a surveillance image of the suspect that they hope will lead to an arrest.
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Anyone with information is being asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS.
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