THIS IS the moment a “weak” woman stole money from a terminally ill pensioner who had collapsed.
Thomas Purtill, 80, had “decided to go up and throw a few dollars in the pokies” at his local pub, just north of Brisbane, before he suffered a medical episode.
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The pensioner, who only has six months to live, was about to cash in his winnings of £160 when he collapsed to the ground of the pub and dropped his ticket.
“I remember landing on the floor,” Purtill told 7NEWS.
“I think I fell over before I got the ticket into the machine (to cash it in).”
CCTV footage from the pub showed the thief initially looking concerned for the 80-year-old, and calling over pub staff.
When she returns, Purtill can be seen pointing to something by the machine.
The woman appears to notice the ticket he had dropped, moves over to the machine, and quickly pockets his winnings.
While Purtill received medical attention, the brazen thief snuck away from the scene and used another machine to withdraw the cash.
The CCTV footage has since been released in order to help police identity the criminal involved.
When Purtill was asked what he thought of the thief’s actions, he said: “I can’t really say on TV. It wouldn’t be allowed.
“If you’re that desperate … If someone came up to me and said, ‘You’ve had a win, can I have $10 to buy a loaf of bread, a bottle of milk for the kids?’, I would have given it to them.”
He went on to call her “weak”, and urged anyone who might know the woman to “give her up”.
Although, he says that his faith in humanity was restored after the incredible treatment he received, and after staff members offered to reimburse his stolen winnings.
Purtill spent two days in hospital after the incident on November 27.
After a series of tests doctors uncovered the reason for his collapse, and told him he has terminal cancer.
He has since returned for cancer treatment, and told that he has between three to six months to live.
“I don’t want to die,” he said.
“But I’m going to.”
Police are urging anyone with information about the woman to come forward.
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Neha Dhillon
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