An elderly man had his watch stolen and could have lost his sight after he was attacked with a chemical substance.

The 75-year-old was set upon by two men riding a scooter while he was walking down Buckingham Parade, off The Broadway in Stanmore on September 20.

They approached him outside Speedway and forcibly grabbed his wrist before taking his Cartier Pasha watch.

The suspects then casually walked up to him and squirted a toxic substance in his face from a bottle.

A specialist confirmed that, were it not for the swift intervention of an ambulance service and a passing doctor, he could have been blinded in one eye.

DS Amar Patel, from Harrow CID, said: “This is a despicable attack on an elderly gentleman going about his daily business.

“The victim was unable to defend himself against this vicious robbery which was followed up by a senseless attack with what we now know to be a noxious substance.

“It is vital that we bring the culprits to justice before they target anyone else. They may well have used local petrol stations.

“Anyone who saw anything suspicious at the time or recognises the description of the suspects is urged to call our incident room or Crimestoppers anonymously.”

Police in Harrow are appealing for information and witnesses, no arrests have been made and enquiries are ongoing.

The moped used by the robbers was completely black, the suspects wore all black clothing made of canvas material and the round helmets were fitted with full visors.

The stolen watch has a brown leather strap, gold rim and gold face, is customised and is engraved with hour numbers.

Anyone with any information on the attack is asked to call police on 07769 162 964 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.