AN 80-year-old Bolton woman prayed for her life as she was punched in the face during a terrifying robbery ordeal in her home.

Kathleen Boyce was attacked by a merciless burglar after she was woken by noises during the night.

The man threatened the elderly widow with a breadknife before he punched her twice and put his hands around her neck.

Recovering at the home of relatives, Mrs Boyce said: "I started to scream and he punched me twice in the face.

"He then grabbed my hair then put his hands around my neck. I thought he was going to choke me. I was terrified."

The devout Roman Catholic said she prayed as the burglar held her captive for more than two-and-a-half hours while he ransacked her home on the outskirts of the town centre.

He then took her keys, locked her inside her home and fled. Mrs Boyce shouted for help through a window, managing to attract the attention of a neighbour returning from a night out, and was rescued.

The former town hall cleaner, who was left badly bruised, said: "I just do not want any other pensioners to go through what I did."

Her daughter-in-law, Julie Boyce, called for harsher penalties for criminals who attack the elderly.

She said: "We are all shattered. I just do not think there are enough deterrents these days. She has been so brave -- I would have collapsed if a similar thing had happened to me."

The grandmother of two was asleep in her council-owned home on Saturday night when she was woken at about 10pm by sounds of banging and smashing glass.

Mrs Boyce thought it was coming from outside and tried to get back to sleep, but then got up to investigate. As she walked out of her bedroom door, she was confronted by a man on the landing.

Mrs Boyce said: "He said: 'Don't scream. I won't hurt you'." But he pushed her on to her bed and attacked her.

The thief demanded money and held her captive while he searched her home. He stole cash, jewellery including the engagement ring given to her by her late husband Patrick, food and other items, and loaded them into her new shopping trolley.

He also grabbed the £1 she had saved for the church collection plate the next day and a charity box for Bolton Hospice.

Before fleeing, the man stole her keys and locked her inside the house after ripping out her Careline system and telephone. He warned Mrs Boyce not to shout for help because he was "coming back later", but she managed to shout out of her bedroom window and was rescued at about 3am.

Detectives say a man matching the description of the thief had tried to break into a nearby house on the same evening.

Police arrested a 31-year-old man in connection with the incident last night and a quantity of stolen property was recovered. Witnesses should contact Bolton CID on 0161 856 5740 or 0800 555111.