Theft of purse at Quiznos lands two in trouble

A Quiznos employee and her friend could face multiple charges stemming from the theft of a customer's purse Sept. 16.

According to the Oak Creek police report:

An Oak Creek man called police at 5:50 p.m. Sept. 16 after the Coach purse his wife accidentally left at Quiznos Subs, 8880 S. Howell Ave., was taken from the manager's office by a store employee.

Police questioned the employee, a 31-year-old Caledonia woman, but she insisted the purse in question actually belonged to her. After an hour of questioning, the woman admitted to officers that she gave the purse to her girlfriend, a 31-year-old Racine woman, and told her to empty it. The employee then emptied out her own purse and put the contents into the stolen Coach purse, stating she and the victim had identical purses.

The purse and credit cards were returned to the victim, with the exception of $100, which had been spent by the employee's friend. The friend also admitted she took the credit cards and made several purchases at Kohl's, Target and Pick 'n Save before the cards were returned to the owner.

Police arrested the employee for theft and obstruction and her friend was arrested for fraud and theft. The two are scheduled to appear in the district attorney's office Sept. 24.

During the investigation police discovered the Racine woman had valid warrant for a sex offender registry violation with Wisconsin Community Corrections and a felony warrant for a sex offender registry violation with Racine County Sheriff's Office. She was taken to Racine County Jail.