A North Texas woman said the would-be purse thief who approached her after lunch in a busy shopping center appeared at first to just be lost.
The Dallas wife and mother of two, who did not want to be identified, said the man caught her off guard while she was leaving Chipotle along Central Expressway near Forest Lane on Monday.
The man stopped her as she was getting into her car and asked for directions to a maid service. When she tried to offer help, he reached for her purse.
The victim said she screamed so loudly, she stopped traffic in the busy parking lot.
“Actually my voice is a little rough today, because I just screamed," she said.
She said her handbag was wrapped around her wrist out of habit.
“Because of the way I hold my purse, the more he pulled on it, the better grip I got," the victim said.
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Between her firm grip and strong lungs, the robber ran off empty-handed.
“I can still see his face as he was running away; he had this smile on his face that I can't seem to get out of my head," she said.
Two men in the parking lot chased after the would-be thief, but he got away.
