Police Warning: Serial Purse Snatcher Employs Unusual Method
Posted January 28, 2009 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Normally when you think about purse snatchers, the image comes to mind of a thug charging up to a woman on a street corner, grabbing her bag and running off.
And that ‘s what makes an apparent serial purse snatcher plaguing parking lots in the City of Toronto such an unusual culprit. He’s not only committing the crime, he’s giving cops a key clue they normally never get – his “accomplice.”
In this case, it’s not a who, but a what – his red hatchback car.
The vehicle is the common denominator in the crimes that have similar M.O.s. And there have been at least three of them that police know about so far.
It started on January 2nd when a woman was brushing snow off her car around 6:30pm at the Bayview Village Mall in the Sheppard and Bayview area.
As she was distracted by her task, a red car pulled up beside her and the driver rolled down his window. “Excuse me,” he said, as she turned to face him. And then without warning, he grabbed her handbag and drove away.
Exactly a week later, it happened again. This time, it was at the Food Basics plaza at Sheppard and Victoria Park. The time was close to the previous attack – 5pm. But the driver didn’t say anything. Instead he simply cruised by, grabbed the purse and hit the accelerator.
On January 12, he struck a third time. It was 9:40pm and the target site in the final case was the Fairview Mall. But there was a key difference in this brazen theft. Instead of simply rolling down the window, the crook actually hit his victim with his car on the side of her leg.
When she was checking out her injury, he grabbed her carry-all. But the victim wasn’t about to give up without a fight and held onto her purse. She wound up being dragged a short distance before finally giving up.
Luckily she wasn’t seriously hurt.
Cops are sure the same guy is responsible for all three attacks and are aware there could be more they don’t know about yet.
He’s described as:
- White,
- Dark hair,
- Thin,
- Between 25 and 40.
The vehicle is said to be a red hatchback, believed to be a Dodge Caliber (top left, as seen in a grainy still from a mall security camera.)
Police have put out a public alert about this suspect and think his car may be their best clue. If you spot it or the guy in it, call (416) 808-3300 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at (416) 222-TIPS (8477).
