'Appalling' Attack: Burglars Water-Board Gran

A grandmother who had boiling water poured on her and was water-boarded by two masked burglars has described the torture as "sheer hell".

Francoise Jansen, 73, said she feared she was going to die after raiders forced their way into her six-bedroom home in Surrey and carried out the attack which police called "appalling" and "horrendous".

Mrs Jansen, who was alone in the house, was forced to open a safe before the men helped themselves to a haul of expensive jewellery and personal items worth a reported £150,000.

Describing the horrific experience, she said: "They asked me if I had any grandchildren, I told them I had 10 and they said, 'We are going to kill you, do you think your grandchildren will miss you?'

"I was consumed by fear. It was sheer hell and all I can remember is praying."

The pensioner said she tried to press a panic button installed in her bedroom, prompting the burglars to boil a kettle and pour scalding water over her arm as punishment.

The criminals, dressed in black clothes and balaclavas, also threatened to cut her fingers off as they held her captive for several hours in the house on a private estate in St George's Hill, Weybridge.

She was gagged, water-boarded and tied to a radiator during the serious assault that left her with multiple injuries.

Mrs Jansen was ordered to open a second safe but was unable to perform the combination. As a result, the burglars, who entered the property around 10.50pm last Friday, tied her hands behind her back.

Then they made her lie in her bath where a water-drenched towel was wrapped around her face a number of times to simulate drowning.

Mrs Jansen said: "Then they tied me to the towel rail with cable they had ripped from a nearby radio, they cut off my trousers and T-shirt with scissors. I was trembling because I thought they were going to rape me and I just kept praying."

She also told the Daily Mail: "I was semi-conscious but eventually I realised they were gone and I had to bite myself out of the wires to get free."

The pensioner managed to raise the alarm but police were unable to locate the men - who are believed to have escaped and headed towards Brooklands Road on foot - following a search of the area.

Detective Inspector Jake Nuttall, who is leading the investigation, said: "This was an appalling, unprovoked attack on a defenceless, elderly woman in her own home and Surrey Police is carrying out a thorough and extensive investigation to bring these cowardly offenders to justice."

Officers have appealed for witnesses or anyone with information about the incident to come forward. Anyone who witnessed the burglary or has any information should call Surrey Police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.