Women's purses targeted by thieves in Vacaville, police seek suspects

( KRON ) — The Vacaville Police Department announced Wednesday it has seen an uptick in the number of cases where thieves are targeting women's purses while shopping. The department released images of three suspects.

Thieves are sometimes using an accomplice to distract victims while another takes items from the unattended purses, according to police. "Other times the thief will just steal items while the purse is momentarily unattended for mere seconds," Vacaville PD said.

Once wallets are stolen from the purses, fraudulent purchases are made immediately amounting to hundreds or thousands of dollars being used from the victims’ accounts.

Vacaville police shared images of three suspects (below) who were allegedly involved in one of these theft schemes. "These individuals are associated with a recent case where a victim's wallet was stolen while she was shopping and her cards were immediately used for over $1k of fraudulent purchases," the department said.

Authorities pointed out that the woman photographed in the black and white hat is suspected to be connected to other similar incidents in Modesto, Elk Grove, Lodi and other Central Valley area cities.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Community Service Officer England at (707)-449-5459.

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