Two boys have been arrested following the death of an 82-year-old pensioner at her home in Suffolk.
Joy Middleditch, 82, died Monday after a break-in at her home by the burglars.
She was pushed to the ground and left there until a relative found her the next day.
The mother of three, 82, who was also a great-great-grandmother, was taken to hospital on Saturday afternoon after the nighttime raid.
Her family described her as a “strongly determined character” who was “taken too soon.”
Joy Middleditch, 82, died Monday after a break-in at her home by the burglars
An autopsy was performed by the Interior Ministry on March 27, although the grandmother’s injuries have not been disclosed
Suffolk Police said: ‘Officers were called just after 1.50pm on Saturday 25 March to report that an elderly woman had been found on the floor of her home on Grayson Avenue following a robbery.
The incident is believed to have occurred during the hours of darkness sometime between the evening of Friday, March 24, and early Saturday morning, March 25.
The victim was found conscious but in serious condition and was taken to James Paget Hospital for treatment. Unfortunately, the woman passed away in the hospital in the early hours of Monday, March 27.’
Police confirmed that two teenage boys were arrested on Friday in connection with the pensioner’s death.
Joy Middleditch died after masked robbers burst into her home and knocked her to the ground. She was found in critical condition and later died in hospital
Flowers left outside a property in Pakefield, Suffolk, where 82-year-old Joy Middleditch died
Officers have pursued numerous lines of investigation and today, Friday, March 31, arrested two men in connection with the incident.
“A 15-year-old boy and a 14-year-old boy, both from the Lowestoft area, were arrested on suspicion of murder and taken to the Martlesham Police Investigation Center for questioning.
‘On Monday, March 27, a post-mortem examination was carried out by the Ministry of the Interior. The cause of death has yet to be confirmed, pending further investigation.”
In a statement earlier this week, her family said: ‘Joy was a strong, determined character who loved life and her dog.
“She was a loving person who was sadly taken from us too soon.
‘As a family we would like to thank the police and the community for all their help and support.’
It comes after another retiree died Monday following a burglary by a patient who had escaped from a mental health facility.
Grandmother Beryl Purdy, 86, was found seriously injured and died on her property in Broomfield, near Bridgwater, Somerset, on Monday.
Retiree Beryl Purdy, 86, died Monday after a break-in by an escaped mental patient at her home
Police officers called to the break-in tried to rescue her, but she was unable to regain consciousness and died at the scene.
Reportedly, the two men who found Ms Purdy’s body called the police on Monday afternoon. Her attacker had already left the scene on foot, but was followed by a police helicopter and a dog unit and arrested three hours later in the nearby forest.
He has since been sectioned and transferred to a secure mental health unit after doctors determined he was unable to be interviewed about the grandmother’s death.
The grandmother’s family released a statement through Avon and Somerset Police on Friday saying she was ‘very much a part of the village’ and would be missed.
A man in his 30s was apprehended and classified under the Mental Health Act after disappearing from a mental health unit, but not from a secure facility.
He was not fit to be questioned by police about the death or held in police custody, doctors concluded.