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VIDEO: Woman is accused of stealing purse, assaulting employees at Massachusetts nursing home

WORCESTER, Mass. — Police in Worcester, Massachusetts are looking for a woman accused of stealing a purse and assaulting employees at a nursing home.

The nursing home scuffle on Tuesday morning was all captured on security cameras, showing workers trying to stop the woman who was allegedly trying to steal from them. Police shared the video with WFXT.

“Oh my goodness,” said Crystal Makowski, who visited the nursing home on Friday, when seeing the video.

The video shows a woman walking into a room at the nursing home.

“She started taking things that didn’t belong to her. She took a purse [from] some of the employees and confronted her and she got very violent with them,” said Worcester Police Lt. Sean Murtha.

An employee follows behind her into the room and then tries to lock the suspect inside. When confronted, the suspect fights back violently, knocking employees to the ground on multiple occasions. Police say she threw one woman to the ground and slammed another one’s hand in the door. Several other employees jump in to help but the suspect eventually breaks out of the room, pushing over one of the employees, before making an escape.

Police say one of the women who fought back has a possible concussion, another broke a finger, and the third has some back trouble.

Despite the effort of all three women, police say the suspect got away and now the search is on. Police hope someone recognizes her.

Witnesses told police the suspect was driving a maroon SUV that had a Lyft sticker in the back windshield “and had some rims that were out of the ordinary," Murtha said.

"They were described as fancy rims on the SUV. It stands out a little bit, so hopefully, someone else knows who she is," said Murtha.

Makowski, the nursing home visitor, said the incident “was a shock to the staff.”

“This is a very great place, very accommodating, almost like a family here," she said. “So it would be very unsuspecting for someone to come with that type of motivation.”

Police said this wasn’t the first time someone has robbed the nursing home.

“I hope they get her. This is where you feel safe, and the last place you expect someone to go for a robbery, as well as doing an assault,” Makowski said.

If you have any information, you’re asked to call Worcester Police.

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