A MUM says she was threatened “with a hammer” after confronting a woman she believes stole money from her bank account, after losing her bank card.

Annie Fox, from Southend, had just had money paid into her account and was going to use it specifically for nappies and other supplies for her youngest children – a one-year-old and an eight-week-old.

After dropping her bank card in between going to Spar and The Chick Inn, in Sutton Road, the mum-of-four quickly learnt that about £80 had been spent on her card via contactless payments in a number of shops – on the same road.

After going into the shops which flagged up on her bank statement, she was shocked after being shown CCTV by one of the shop owners.

It showed a couple paying for a bottle of expensive CÎROC vodka by contactless payment with what appeared to be with Annie’s bank card, at the exact time as the transaction on her statement.

The 22-year-old said: “When I found out money had been spent on my card I was so upset.

“Me and my partner had just been to the shop on Sutton Road and then withdrawn £10 out to buy some food from the chicken shop there, but when we got home we realised it was gone and I checked my online banking straight away and saw the transactions.

“I had to try and borrow money as that money was for my one-year-old daughter’s and eight-week-old’s nappies and baby milk.

“So many nice people on Facebook offered to get me things but I said no because I’m not the type of person to take off people.”

Transactions totalling just over £77 were made on Annie’s card at Co-op and Sutton Local, both in Sutton Road, just across the road from where Annie was, at The Chick Inn.

After accessing the CCTV in one of the shops and posting an appeal on Facebook, Annie received messages naming the person in the images and managed to track her down on Facebook.

Ms Fox said: “I messaged her to say I know what she has done and that I want the money back, and she blocked me straight away but then messaged me from a friend’s Facebook saying she was really sorry and would pay me back, and that she didn’t know I had kids.

“When I explained I had informed the police she asked to meet me to sort it out between us without police which I wasn’t going to do for my own safety, and she then became threatening towards me saying she was going to do me in with a hammer.”

Annie went back to the police to make them aware of the threats and was eventually able to get her money back from the bank but says the thief should still have to pay for what she had done.

Essex Police is investigating.