Visit to Local Park Ends With Smashed Window, Stolen Purse

Gwinnett County Police have obtained video surveillance of a man who may have broken into a car at Duncan Creek Park on Sept. 17.

A Flowery Branch woman left her purse in the car while she visited the park. When she returned to her vehicle half an hour later, she discovered her front passenger side window had been smashed and her purse taken. The purse contained a credit and debit card. The woman contacted her husband who subsequently checked to see if the stolen credit card had been used. Between the estimated time of theft at 6:45 p.m. and 7:15 p.m., charges totaling more than $460 were made at the Hamilton Mill Walmart.

After gathering information for the report, the investigating officer went to Walmart and spoke with store security personnel. Using the transaction times and amounts, security personnel were able to provide video surveillance showing the individual who used the stolen credit card.

The individual, according to the police report, was a black male, 40 to 50 years of age, approximately 5-foot-7 to 5-foot-10 weighing 165 to 185 pounds. At the time of the transaction, the male was wearing blue jeans, a green or black t-shirt, a black hat and what appeared to be an identification tag around his neck. The man was shown purchasing a Playstation 3 and a Walmart gift card. Parking lot surveillance showed the man leaving Walmart in a newer model silver Nissan Altima or Maxima.

The employee who rang up the purchases later told police she suspected something was amiss when the first transaction went through with one card, but the second was declined after the man punched in the wrong zip code when prompted by the card reader. The employee asked to see the card, but the male declined and left the scene.

The victim later contacted the officer to advise two more fraudulent charges had been made -- one at the Walmart gas station in the amount of $40.22 and another at Home Depot totaling $422.97.

The case is listed as active.

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