TWO youths tried to rob an 11-year-old boy in Ross-on-Wye.

The boy was walking along Waterside at 3.45pm on Wednesday, March 6, when it is alleged that two teenagers, aged 17 and 19, tugged at his rucksack.

One of them asked if he had anything valuable, before pulling the bag off the child’s back and emptying the contents.

The other teen then took the boy’s mobile phone out of his pocket and dropped it on the ground.

Both of them then ran off after a woman intervened.

“While we are treating this as an attempted robbery, I would like to stress that the boy wasn’t hurt in the incident, wasn’t threatened with any violence and had nothing stolen from him,” said PC Bee Masters.

“However, he was left extremely upset by the incident and it is important that we find the youths responsible.

“That is why we really need to speak with the woman who intervened as she may have more information about the pair and be able to give us more details about what happened.”

The youths are described as white and wearing dark clothing, with hoods over their heads and scarves covering the bottom of their faces.

Witnesses are asked to call PC Masters on 0300 333 3000, quoting reference 164-S-0703.