A 21-year-old beautician was so upset last week after hearing about a disabled elderly man injured in a mugging that she started an online campaign to help him.

Donations for the Englishman, Alan Barnes, surged when the campaign went viral and so far has raised more than $474,000 (£316K).

Katie Cutler explained on her GoFundMe page that 67-year-old Alan Barnes was born with a number of defects after his mother contracted German Measles during Pregnancy. He was taking out the trash at his home in Gateshead when a thug demanded money and knocked him down after finding his pockets empty. After being treated for a broken collar bone, the man went to stay with his sister and was "too frightened to return to his home."

"We can't take away what has happened," she wrote on her fundraising page. "But with a little donation we can make the future a prettier one & help towards the cost of his new home."

"We've showed him that there are more good than bad people in this world," wrote donor Sara Phillips on the webpage.

(WATCH a video of Alan thanking supporters from the The Telegraph *NOTE auto-playing audio, so adjust your speakers)

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