A YORK woman who was the victim of a terrifying robbery today told how her "cowardly" attacker demanded her bag - then flicked a flick-knife open inches from her face.

Iona Edwards, 27, admitted she was "shocked and angered" by the incident, which took place just before 11pm last Tuesday.

But she decided to bravely speak out to help catch her attacker, and to warn other women about walking alone in the Bootham area - scene of a spate of similar crimes in recent months.

She told the Evening Press she had been on her way to work at a homeless centre when two men approached her in Marygate Lane, close to Scarborough Bridge.

"One of the men walked towards me and I thought he was going to ask me the time," recalled Iona, who lives with her boyfriend in the Holgate area of York.

"But he pulled a knife out, flicked it in front of my face and demanded my bag. I froze and gave it him straight away."

Iona said she could not recall what raced through her mind when the mugger pulled out his flick knife.

But she added: "I've often thought about things like that happening and whether I would fight back.

"The reality is you just freeze and do what they say. It's such a frightening experience. The knife was right in front of my face, about ten to 12 inches away."

The robber made off with Iona's bag containing bank cards, a driving licence, mobile phone and less than £10 in cash.

Iona believes the senseless crime may be drug-linked and says that her ordeal means that she will never go back to that area again alone in the dark.

"I've done that walk hundreds of times and I never thought something like that would happen to me," she admitted.

"I would say it's definitely dashed my confidence but it's angered me more than anything. What right has he got to make me change the way I live my life?"

Iona moved to York from Scotland more than ten years ago when her father landed a job at City of York Council. She said she had always assumed York was a safe city, compared to neighbouring Leeds and Bradford.

"Generally, I still think York is a safe city," she said. "But it's changing. The amount of crime and violence in the city is increasing due to the drug culture growing."

The knifeman was white, aged 18 to 22, and was about 6ft tall. He had short blond hair and was wearing a light blue hooded top with a sports logo in the middle. He fled along the riverbank towards Clifton.

Anyone who witnessed the robbery should phone York police on 01904 631321.

Updated: 10:36 Friday, September 03, 2004