A "YOUNG boy of school age" cut a 35-year-old man with a knife in an attempted mugging in York.

North Yorkshire Police said the victim was approached by the suspect in a field in the Fulford area at about 10.20am on Monday, and the suspect demanded he hand over his mobile phone.

A police spokeswoman said when the victim refused "the offender cut him on the arm and stomach with what is believed to be a small blade like a Stanley knife". The victim was later treated at York Hospital.

The spokeswoman said the suspect was "a young boy of school age, 5ft 5in of slim build, wearing a black jacket with hood up, a snood and black tracksuit bottoms with white socks over the ankles".

Detective Inspector Alan Rowan from the York Serious Crime Team said he did not believe the attempted robbery was related to another robbery on a nearby cycle path on Monday.

He said: "I want to reassure communities in York that at this moment in time police do not believe the two incidents are linked. We are not looking at a pattern of behaviour that the public need to be concerned about.

"We are conducting a number of enquiries surrounding the investigation into these incidents and as always, the safety of the public remains paramount. I encourage anyone who witnessed either of these incidents, or anyone who was in the area at the time, to contact North Yorkshire Police as a matter of priority. You might have vital information that could assist our investigation."

Anyone with any information should phone police on 101, or Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Callers should quote reference 12170221143 when passing on information about the incident.