Look Out for Tattooed Purse Snatcher

Atlanta police are looking for a man they say snatched a woman's purse Friday morning in Midtown.

Around 7:30 a.m., a woman was pumping gas at the at Ponce de Leon and Piedmont avenues when a man jumped into her vehicle and locked the doors, said Zone 5 Commander Maj. Chris Leighty.

"The victim went into the store and the suspect took her purse and ran," Leighty said in an email. He said the suspect fled on foot toward . A citizen tried to chase the man but lost track of him near the Myrtle Street restaurant.

"Officers responded and searched the area," Leighty said. "The suspect was not found, but all of the victim's property was recovered and returned. No one was injured." 

Leighty asks residents to look out for the thief. Police describe the suspect as a black male between the ages of 20 and 25. He has a large tattoo on his neck and two teardrop-shaped tattoos under his right eye, Leighty said.

Since the suspect fled toward the Midtown neighborhood, Leighty said the man might linger in the area. "Call if you suspicious people in the neighborhood," he said.

Leighty stressed for people to pay attention to their surroundings. "You don't have to be paranoid. We are just saying be aware."

Perhaps Friday's incident provides a lesson: It's not a bad idea to lock your car doors when you're at the pump.