Two violent city attacks may be work of one man

Police are investigating two “violent and unprovoked” attacks which they believe could be linked.

Two women were assaulted in Edinburgh city centre over the weekend in a robbery, and an attempted robbery said to be carried out by suspects of a similar description.

In the first incident, a man tried to snatch the handbag of a 40-year-old woman as she walked along East Adam Street at about 5:45pm on Saturday. He threatened her with a knife, punched and kicked her.

In the second incident, a 31-year-old using a cash machine on Forrest Road was forced to hand over money at knifepoint.

In both incidents, the suspect is described as thin, white male, between 5ft 5in and 5ft 7in, with a pale complexion, gaunt features and an unkempt appearance. He was wearing a baseball cap and a pale jumper with dark horizontal stripes.

A police spokesman said: “Both were violent and unprovoked assaults. Due to the proximity and the close timescales, there is a good chance that the same person is responsible for both incidents.”