Flowery Branch Police Department investigators are on the lookout for two women they consider suspects in recent thefts from two area antique stores - one in Flowery Branch and one in Hoschton.
Investigator Robin Kemp said the suspects didn't steal merchandise from the stores on Dec. 21, but instead took wallets from the store clerks' purses. He said the suspects in both cases have entered the stores together. Surveillance footage from the Flowery Branch theft shows one suspect distracting the store clerk, while the other sneaks behind the main counter.
"You can actually see her crawling into the area to get the lady's wallet out of the purse," Kemp said.
He said the suspects in the Flowery Branch case were able to use stolen credit cards from the wallet to make purchases at Home Depot and Target before the clerk realized her wallet was missing. He said a similar incident happened at a store in Hoschton.
"Fortunately, that lady had her credit cards stored in another part [of the purse] so they only got a small amount of cash out of the wallet in that case," Kemp said.
Kemp did not name the stores where the thefts occurred out of a concern for safety, noting that they are small businesses where often there is only one person on duty.
"That's the kind of businesses these people are targeting," Kemp said. "They're going in businesses where there's only one person there and [one] can create a distraction and the other person can go and look for something of value."
Kemp said he suspects there could be other businesses that have been victimized by the pair.
"I believe this is a pair that has probably done this before - or probably continuing to do it," Kemp said.
Kemp said it is possible the women are mother and daughter. He said one suspect is slender and appears to be in her 20s, while the other suspect is heavier-set and looks to be in her 40s.
Kemp said authorities are trying to get a vehicle description, but at this point he said the only information has come from a witness at a neighboring store who said she saw a small white vehicle leave the parking area on the date in question.
For anyone who might have information on the suspects, Kemp asks that they call him at the Flowery Branch Police Department at 770-967-6336.
