Police are hunting a real-life Grinch who stabbed and deflated a giant inflatable Santa outside a family home.

Emergency medical technician Michael Cook, 40, was at a carol service with his eight-year-old daughter Scarlett in Lowestoft, Suffolk, when the attacker pounced.

She was left heartbroken following the incident and even asked her dad if she had done something wrong to deserve it.

He said: “Santa is quite an innocent symbol of Christmas, I just don’t understand why someone would do it. Scarlett is heartbroken.''

A neighbour witnessed the incident but was too scared to confront the man directly.

Instead he called Michael who was able to check his video camera footage when he returned home.

Michael, who works for the East of England Ambulance Service, said: “It’s annoying, because you’re trying to teach your child right from wrong and something like that happens.

“They’re like, ‘have I done something bad, is that why it’s happened?’

“I said, ‘no, unfortunately it’s very poorly people’.

“I’m going to do a display next time, it’s not going to put me off. I will do another one, you can’t hide away, I’m very determined just to carry on.''

Suffolk Police said the owner has reported a crime and they will be liaising with him.