Alleged Thief Makes Mistake Of Grabbing Cop's Wife's Handbag

PALM SPRINGS (CBSLA.com) — A California Highway Patrol officer chased after a man who allegedly ran off with his wife's handbag in Palm Springs.

The incident at the Chop House on South Palm Canyon Drive was reported about 8:15 p.m. Saturday, Palm Springs police Sgt. Mike Kovaleff said in a written statement.

Kovaleff said the unidentified CHP officer, who was off-duty at the time, was having dinner with his wife at a sidewalk cafe when a man walked by and grabbed her bag.

The officer ran after the suspect while dialing 911 on his cell phone.

The purse and its contents were subsequently recovered.

The suspected thief remained at large Sunday.

Police said he was last seen wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans and was described as a white male with a thin build.

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