Man arraigned in attack on woman, 71

NEWTON -- Days after she was mugged and left unconscious and bleeding alongside her car, 71-year-old Elva Keane still suffers from migraines so bracing she has to rest in bed.

But her husband says she would love the chance to confront her attacker.

"She's not a wimp by any means," William Keane, 74, said of his wife, a former nurse.

Yesterday in Newton District Court, a prosecutor said Steven J. Rigby, 26, asked Keane for a cigarette, banged her head against the door frame of her Geo Metro, and fled the scene with $40 and her pocketbook Wednesday night. The attack left Keane bleeding from a head wound that required internal sutures and seven stitches.

Rigby, a Milford resident, pleaded not guilty to unarmed robbery of a victim 60 or older and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon of a victim 60 or older.

He was arrested Sunday after his brother Michael, 29, contacted police. Michael Rigby told authorities that Steven had argued Wednesday with his girlfriend and "stormed out of the house."

Shortly afterward, his brother said, Rigby called to say he had just stolen a GMC Yukon from a Mobil gas station. Later, his brother said, Rigby called to say he had robbed a woman. A GMC Yukon was found near the site of the assault.

Deborah Gaffney, an assistant Middlesex district attorney, said that when Rigby was arrested at South Station, he asked authorities, "Is the old woman all right?"

Rigby's lawyer, David Levinson, said Rigby, who is blond and 5 feet 7 inches tall, does not match the police report's description of a "tall, white male with dark hair."

"The alleged victim wasn't able to state that he had committed the act," Levinson said after the arraignment.

"If you look at his record, he has no history of violent attacks," he said, adding that Rigby's family was concerned with past drug abuse.

The attack occurred at the Auburndale Market, a convenience store located about five minutes from Keane's home.

A little before 9 p.m. Wednesday, Keane purchased cigarettes at the store. The clerk, Dawn Wiggins, 43, noticed that the man standing behind Keane put back the iced tea he had planned to buy and left the store.

As Keane was opening the door to her small vehicle, Rigby asked Keane whether she had an extra cigarette, Gaffney said.

Gaffney said Keane replied, "Sure," adding that Rigby then banged Keane's head into the door frame of the car.

Later, Wiggins said she stepped out of the store for a cigarette break and was terrified to see Keane on the ground. Wiggins said she kneeled down and took Keane's right hand, telling the now conscious woman to stay still.

"I just don't understand why he did that," Wiggins said yesterday. "He had no right to harm her."

Keane and Wiggins identified Rigby in a police lineup as a man who had been in the store. But Keane did not identify him as her assailant, Gaffney said.

"She didn't feel she had a good look at him," William Keane said.

Rigby is set to appear in Newton District Court Thursday when a judge will determine whether it is safe to release him on bail.

April Yee can be reached at ayee@globe.com.