Thief snatches $20 bill out of elderly woman's hand in Bronx deli
MOTT HAVEN, Bronx (WABC) -- Police are looking for the woman who was caught on camera snatching a $20 bill out of an elderly woman's hand.
The incident was reported inside a deli on Saint Ann's Avenue last Friday, just after 10 p.m.
The 84-year-old victim was waiting to make a purchase with the money in her hand, when the female suspect approached her and took the money right out of her hand.
Shirley Weston said the move was so cruel, at first she thought it was a joke.
"I'm thinking that she knows both of us, you know, was playing around," Weston said. "She said 'this is my money' or 'this ain't your money,' and my daughter said 'that's my mother's money and give her her money,' and she said 'I ain't giving nothing back.'"
The victim's daughter, Deborah Weston, exchanged words with the suspect, and she eventually gave the money back -- or so it appeared.
"She put the money in my hand and when I looked, it was a dollar," Deborah Weston said.
As soon as the victim's daughter realized it was a $1 bill in her hands, she said she chased after the suspect. She caught up to her and said they fought and she even broke her finger.
Police say the suspect then took off westbound on East 138th Street.
The women had never seen her before, but Shirley Weston said if she ever sees her again, she knows exactly what she will say to her.
"How would she feel if somebody did that to her mother," Shirley Weston said.
UPDATE: Police have arrested 31-year-old Joanne Garcia in connection with this incident. She is charged with third-degree robbery and fourth-degree grand larceny.
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