Ahmet Dobran: 82-year-old man dies after robbers break his back in East London

An 82-year-old man has died months after his back was broken by a gang of robbers in London.

Ahmet Dobran’s spine was fractured in three places during the brutal attack, which saw one man grab him by the neck while two more beat his back and arms while swearing at him.

He was out shopping near his home at the time, carrying shopping bags and using a walking stick.

The Metropolitan Police said the men took a gold bracelet and Longines watch after forcing him to the ground, adding: “The attack aggravated other conditions, such as Parkinson's, and a cancer the victim was receiving treatment for.”

Mr Dobran and daughters said they were "devastated" by the attack in September, adding: "We are appalled at how someone can do this to an old man."

He died in hospital in the early hours of Monday, just over four months after the attack on 27 August.

Police have released CCTV images of men they want to trace in connection with the attack in Sussex Road, East Ham.

A 33-year-old suspect was arrested and charged with robbery last month but two men are yet to be identified.

Detective Inspector Iain Wallace said: “Mr Dobran was hospitalised following the attack in August and had been in an induced coma for several weeks until he was recently introduced to a nursing home.

“Sadly Mr Dobran's health deteriorated soon after and he was taken to hospital and passed away.

"His family are utterly devastated and, whilst we are unable to ascertain at this time that he died as a result of the attack, we do know that at the very least it may have aggravated other existing conditions. We await the results of the post-mortem to determine this.”

DI Wallace urged the public to help police to trace the two wanted men, adding: “I would urge them to come forward to stop them from using the same level of violence on another vulnerable person."

Mr Dobran’s death came amid a spate of murders and violence in the capital, seeing four young men stabbed to death during New Year’s Eve celebrations.

Scotland Yard and the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, have outlined initiatives to tackle rising violent crime such as increasing the use of targeted stop and search.

The Government was criticised last month for demanding elected Police and Crime Commissioners increase the amount of money taken from council tax to generate funding for forces dealing with increases to 999 calls, demand, recorded criminal offences and the terror threat.

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101, tweet @MetCC or contact Crimestoppers anonymously via 0800 555 111.