Suspect Arrested in Safeway Purse Theft

A transient has been arrested in connection with a purse theft in January at the Belmont Safeway store on El Camino Real. 

As a result of tips that were received by Belmont police following the release of the Mark Damon Taylor, 44, was arrested Thursday. 

According to police, Taylor is implicated in not only the theft of the purse, but also multiple additional counts of  identity theft and use of a stolen credit card.  Belmont and San Mateo police investigators have been working together on this investigation since January.

A female, who was with Taylor at the time of the theft and appears in the security camera footage, is not being charged at this time.

On Jan. 13,  79-year-old San Carlos woman was shopping at the Safeway store, located at 1100 El Camino in Belmont. She had placed her purse in the child seat portion of her shopping cart while shopping. 

Sometime between 5:30pm and 6:00pm, the the woman walked away from her cart to gather some items and her purse was taken.  After a review of the store security cameras, investigators were able to learn that an African American male with a stocky build took the purse from the victim’s shopping cart when the victim’s attention was elsewhere. 

Store security cameras then show the male suspect leaving the store with the victim’s purse.  The male suspect was apparently in the company of an African American female, who left the store a short time later.  Some of the victim’s credit cards were later used in San Mateo.

Belmont police spokesman Lt. Pat Halleran reminds the public that while what the victim did while shopping is a common practice; however, do not to leave purses, cell phones or other valuables unattended in shopping carts.  

Halleran added, "This case points out that it only takes a moment for a thief to steal your property."

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