A TEENAGE girl was stabbed in the back after she refused to give up her phone and wallet.

At around 8.15pm on Saturday, February 18 a 17-year-old girl left her friend’s house in Boundary Road, East Ham, heading towards the shops in Central Park Road.

When she got to the Ladysmith Avenue junction she was approached by a man who demanded she hand over her phone and some cash.

The victim started running away but felt a blow to her back. When she noticed blood on the back of her clothes, she realised she had been stabbed.

The teenager called her boyfriend who rushed her to nearby Newham Hospital before she was transferred to a specialist centre for treatment.

She went home a few days later, but officers claim the attack “could have resulted in her losing her life”.

Police believe the suspect is Asian, around 18 or 19-years-old, 5ft9, with a black beard.

He was last seen wearing a black North Face jacket and grey Nike jogging bottoms.

DC Adrian Topps from Newham CID said: "This was an unprovoked attack that has left a young girl with serious injuries.

"The suspect needs to be caught.

"We are appealing for any witnesses or anyone who has information about the attack to contact us so we can bring the culprit to justice."

Anyone with any information should call Newham CID on 0208 217 5820 or 101, tweet @MetCC, or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.