13 WTHR IndianapolisAvon Police announce suspects in purse snatchings

Avon Police announce suspects in purse snatchings

Police expect to file charges against two people in connection with a string of purse snatchings in Avon.

Brittany Wilcox, 23, of Brownsburg, and 25-year-old Michael Perkins of Indianapolis will both face five felony counts of theft or assisting a criminal in theft. Police say a license plate number and anonymous tip helped in identifying the suspects.

More charges may be filed against Perkins in Marion County, where police believe he may have used some of the stolen credit cards. Avon police say Wilcox did not use the credit cards.

Thursday story

A man rushes out of the Walmart in Avon with a shopping cart and a baby girl inside of it.  Surveillance video from the store shows him dodging customers as he runs outside the store.
 
Why is in such a hurry to get out of the store?

It's a question Jennifer Smith from Avon and Avon Police can answer.

Smith says moments earlier, the man, tried to steal her purse right out of her shopping cart in the deli section.

"What makes you get to that point?  That you have to do that with your own child in the cart with you? It's sad," says Smith.

"I actually had my hands on my cart.  My four year old son in the big part of the cart and went to reach to get the meat from the deli and I seen my purse lifted up out of the corner of my eye," Smith explains.

"My instinct was to grab it and when I grabbed it from him he said oh, I'm just kidding," she adds.

For Smith though, it was clear this was no joke.

"He stood there long enough for me to even say, you know, you're putting your child in jeopardy trying to steal my purse and he didn't run until I screamed," Smith says.

The Avon mother didn't lose her purse or anything inside of it.  Avon police say at least 5 other women though, in the Avon Walmart, Target and Marshalls have.  Investigators say all of them have been victims of the same man who police believe is working with a woman.  They believe the couple is using their baby as a cover to steal purses right out of shopping carts.

"They do everything they can to look just like a normal joe," says Avon Police Detective Brian Nugent.

Investigators though, say they're not.  Police believe the man and woman are working as a team, shopping for a crime of opportunity.  All of their targets say police, have been women like Smith, sometimes standing just inches away from their purses in shopping carts.

Investigators say the same kind of thing could happen to any woman with a shopping cart and a purse inside of it.
That's why they're advising women to carry a smaller purse with a wrist strap.  If not, they recommend actually buckling your purse into the shopping cart like you would a young child.

"So if people grab it, it's going to be stuck to the cart," explains Detective Nugent.

"Don't ever turn your back now, you know," advises Smith.

For Smith, her purse is one thing.

"Even with my hands on the cart and me being aware of it, it still happened to me," she says.

A baby involved is another story.

"That's what worries me the most is that they don't care about their child and they're putting that child in jeopardy," Smith adds.

Avon police say they have every reason to believe the couple are still doing just that. 

If you want to see pictures of the suspects and the car police believe they are driving, you can find them on Avon's Police Crime Tips page. The case is case number 7.