Suspected Purse Snatcher Returns, Gets Arrested

By OMAR VILLAFRANCA
Updated 10:15 PM CST, Mon, Jul 6, 2009

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Dianna Cook's purse was stolen, found and the suspected thief picked up in under 30 minutes. And police didn't even have to look for the suspect.

Police said they arrested the suspect after he returned to the scene of the crime shortly after it was reported.

Cook called police just before 1:30 a.m. after someone plucked her purse from her truck in the Walmart parking lot in North Richland Hills.

"I just like, put my purse and my groceries in the cab of my truck and I don't have air conditioning, so I had all the windows down," Cook said. "It's a little embarrassing, to be honest."

Cook turned around to return the shopping cart, when she saw someone walking away from her car.

"I saw this man pulling this purse out of my car, and like getting into a black car and driving away," Cook said.
 
Cook called 911, then called the Power Tower, a local prayer line, to ask for God's help. After police showed up, her prayers were answered when she saw the suspect's car rolling toward her and the police officers at roughly 1:47 a.m.

"The guy came back through, he drove the aisle where he was parked," Cook said laughing.

Officers arrested 20 year old Dantan Hallman. He faces burglary of a vehicle charges, marijuana possession charges and resisting arrest.

Inspector Keith Bauman with the North Richland Hills police said Cook was lucky.

"So everything came together the way we would like it to more often, but the timing was just right," Bauman said.

First Published: Jul 6, 2009 9:17 PM CST

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