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Updated: 8:02 p.m. Thursday, April 5, 2012 | Posted: 7:53 p.m. Thursday, April 5, 2012

Purse thieves strike again

Bandits spend $10k in under 15 minutes

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Suspected Purse Thief photo
Channel 2 Action News
This man wearing a woman's scarf was videotaped at a Target on Caroline St. in Atlanta.

By Condace Pressley

Atlanta, GA —

Atlanta Police are hoping a someone will recognize the picture of a man wearing a woman's scarf as he walks into an Atlanta Target store.

The man is wanted for taking a Caroline Cunningham's purse from a shop in Little Five Points and racking up almost $10,000 on her credit cards in under 15 minutes.

"It made me feel badly that they bought iPads and really expensive items when I don't have a fancy phone and I don't have an iPad," Cunningham told Channel 2 Action News' Ryan Young.

Cunningham told police she was helping customers make a selection in a store when two men came in.

"I tried to help them," she said.

But the men were apparently more focused on distracting her.  She said they pretended to buy a dress.  When the credit card was declined they left the store saying they would get cash from a nearby ATM.  Not only did they not return, they left with Cunningham's wallet.

"Within 15 minutes of the theft they began swiping the card," said Atlanta Police Detective Tyrone Dennis.  "They bought some iPads and some gift cards and then went to other stores spending thousands of dollars."

Cunningham canceled the cards immediately, but the damage had already been done.

"A lot of this would have been stopped if someone would have ID'd the man using a card with my name on it," she said.

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