A MOTHER and her two-year-old daughter holidaying from New Zealand are the victims of a brazen morning bag snatch in Warrnambool’s CBD.
The woman, 23, and her daughter were walking south along a laneway leading from the Coles-Target car park to Koroit Street about 9am yesterday when a man ran past from behind, grabbing her bag containing hundreds of dollars in cash.
Detective Senior Constable Richard Hughes, from Warrnambool criminal investigation unit, said the thief was last seen running into Koroit Street. He was wearing blue jeans and a black hooded jumper.
Detective Senior Constable Hughes said the theft was traumatic for the victim, although no one was injured.
“It’s opportunistic,” he said. Minutes before the robbery the woman and her daughter had walked from a pharmacy behind Target to a café, where the mother asked for directions to the nearest toilets.
It was after leaving toilets in the Coles-Target car park and while walking past the National Australia Bank that the ‘Bluebird’ brand handbag, with $560 and a Sony Ericsson mobile phone inside, was snatched from her shoulder.
Detective Senior Constable Hughes said the thief was described as about 175cm tall and of thin build. He said because the man’s escape route took him past the side of the National Australia Bank and other businesses, police had asked nearby retailers to check their CCTV footage.
Witnesses or anyone with information about the theft should call Warrnambool CIU on 5560 1174.
