A man has been jailed after he grabbed a woman off the street and tried to drag her into a driveway in Sutton.

James Gathercole pounced on the young woman as she walked home late at night last August and wordlessly dragged her towards a driveway while covering her mouth.

But the 20-year-old, who had finished work in Worcester Park and was walking alone wearing headphones, fought back by biting Gathercole's hand and screaming. She escaped and Gathercole, 30, ran away.

Detectives have thanked the Sutton Guardian's readers for helping to identify Gathercole from CCTV images after the attack in Sutton Common Road.

The Cayton Road, Coulsdon resident was jailed for four-and-a-half years for attempted kidnapping at Croydon Crown Court on Monday - despite going on the run on the second day of his trial in October. He was tracked down and re-arrested in Sussex, police said.

Sutton police said the case was "challenging and protracted" because of a lack of forensic evidence or statements from independent witnesses.

But Detective Constable David Owen, who led the investigation, said: "We remained determined to identify this man and our breakthrough came through a media appeal.

"We may have struggled without the help of the Sutton Guardian and the public."