Mrs Kaczan, a devout Catholic, moved to Britain from Poland after the Second World War with her husband, who had won the right to settle in the UK because of his military service, the Times reported.
Her neighbour Gary Fitzsimmons told the Daily Mail she was "very resilient". "She often talked about being taken from her home by the Nazis and put to work in a factory. She was glad to move to the UK," he said.
DCI Darren De’ath, who is leading the police investigation, called the attack "absolutely horrific".
“Mrs Kaczan was a well-loved member of the community and that she was targeted in this way is disgusting," he said.
“There are people in Derby who know the person responsible for this crime and I would urge them to come forward with any information that can help bring those responsible to justice.
“We have a number of leads that we are pursuing and a post-mortem will take place to determine a cause of death.”
Mrs Kaczan told police she was approached from behind, knocked over and had her handbag stolen.
The bag the attacker stole, which was green, made of fake leather and has gold clasps, was found at the junction of Moore Street and Normanton Road.
Police said they wanted to hear from anyone who saw a beige Seat Leon which was seen close to where the attack happened place.
They found it abandoned two days later in a car park in Jackson Street, Stockbrook.
Police said a 39-year-old man had been arrested in connection with the attack and released
Anyone with information can call Derbyshire Constabulary on 101 with reference 18000243815 or you can ring Crime Stoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
