An elderly woman is recovering in hospital after being attacked in her own home.
Whakatane police say the 71-year-old from Kawerau unwittingly opened the front door to the attacker, mistaking the man for a relative she was expecting from overseas.
Detective Constable Ash Clements says the man assaulted her after she refused to give him cash - leaving her covered in blood and on the floor of her home on River Road.
The man then took off in her car - but police have since recovered the vehicle and it's now with their forensics team.
Detective Constable Clements is appealing for any information about the attack - which he describes as both callous and cowardly.
