Winnipeg man, 50, arrested after string of purse robberies from seniors
Man faces 3 robbery charges, 9 counts of fraud after credit, debit cards used following robberies
A 50-year-old Winnipeg man has been arrested after police allege he robbed three seniors of their purses last month.
Just after noon on Sept. 20, a 79-year-old woman was approached by a man on Kenaston Boulevard, near Grant Avenue, by a man who robbed her at knifepoint, taking her purse. The man used the knife to cut the strap of the woman's purse before fleeing in a nearby vehicle, according to police.
The woman's credit card was later used at three gas stations and two motels, police said in a Saturday news release.
On Sept. 22, around 11 p.m., a 66-year-old woman on McPhillips Street, north of Logan Avenue, was also robbed of her purse. Again, the person escaped in a vehicle.
And just after noon on Sept. 26, a 79-year-old woman was robbed in the 600 block of Cambridge Street, north of Grant Avenue. That woman's stolen debit and credit cards were later used at a restaurant, a gas station and a motel, police said.
None of the victims were injured, and police say they did not know the person who robbed them.
A major crimes unit investigation identified a 50-year-old man as a suspect. He was arrested on Sept. 27, police said in Saturday's news release.
He now faces three charges of robbery and nine counts of fraud under $5,000.