Grandmother too scared to go out after brutal assault

Kath Codona, 59, was left so traumatised by the incident she is too scared to go out, and has vowed to leave West Pilton for good.

Police are hunting the attackers, who punched the woman in the head and kicked her several times in the body before leaving her unconscious in a dark lane near her home in West Pilton Drive.

The apparently motiveless attack happened at about 10pm on Tuesday night.

Mrs Codona, who has arthritis and slipped discs in her back, said the attackers had not stolen anything from her, even though she was wearing an iPod.

Mrs Codona’s family are keen to track down a young couple who helped her home after the assault.

She told the Evening News: “I’d just left my sister’s house and was walking home.

“I cut down a lane on my way home, and the last thing I remember was being struck in the face and falling to the ground.

“When I came round I was at home and in a lot of pain.”

She was then taken to hospital where medical staff examined her, finding defence wounds where she would have tried to guard her face and body from the attack.

They X-rayed her head and hip, which they thought may have been broken in the attack.

Mrs Codona, whose husband is also disabled, is covered in cuts and bruises, and must return to hospital next week to discover if the internal injuries have worsened.

“I have vague recollections of just shouting my address over and over again, so this couple must have known where to take me,” she said.

“My mind’s made up, I’m going to leave. I’ve been here 28 years and never had a problem but now I’m too scared to go out.

“I couldn’t sleep at all last night and didn’t want the light off. I can’t even stand the thought of people looking in the window at me.

“I use a walking stick, perhaps if I’d taken it that night I’d have been able to fight back with it.

“I don’t know where I’m going to go, perhaps up nearer the rest of my family in Granton. I don’t want to leave my home after all this time, but I can’t live like this either.”

She had originally been so embarrassed by the incident she was reluctant to inform police.

But family persuaded her in a bid not only to catch the perpetrators, but to track down the pair who came to her aid.

Her daughter, Abby Bain, who lives nearby, said: “We want to find out who the couple are to say thanks for what they did.

“Who knows what might have happened if they hadn’t seen her lying there.

“But they might also be able to build a picture of what happened because these people need to be caught.”

Lothian and Borders Police are appealing for anyone with information to contact them on 0131-311 3131 or, alternatively, they can call Crimestoppers anonymously and in confidence on 0800 555 111.