Jim Thorpe police are searching for the suspect in an attempted armed robbery Tuesday morning on West Fifth Street.

A man physically assaulted an elderly woman inside aWest Fifth Street residence, and threatened her with a handgun, but did not get away with any money, according to Detective Lee Marzen.Marzen said police arrived on the scene within seconds of the call coming in at 10:38 a.m., but the suspect had fled the scene."We were near the end of the bridge, so we were in a good position and got here quickly, but the individual was no longer in the residence," Marzen said.The possibly "scruffy looking" white man is described as being just over 6 feet tall, approximately 20 years old with blond hair and wearing red shorts, a red handkerchief over his face and carrying a silver handgun."The woman, who is in her 80s," was the only person in the residence at the time, and thankfully she was not injured," Marzen said.Police are unsure of a possible motive in the case."We don't know if it was a random act or if there was some premeditation and knowledge of the area," Marzen said. "This isn't really the kind of thing that happens around here."Fifth Street and the surrounding area in the borough was busier than normal Tuesday, police said, with people walking around, and they are hopeful someone saw something that can assist with the investigation."We're checking surveillance around the area to see if we can get anything on there," Marzen said."If anyone in the area saw something suspicious before or after the attempted robbery, we ask them to contact police."Anyone with information can contact police at 570-325-4995.