HOBART | A Crown Point woman targeted female shoppers in Hobart and pickpocketed their wallets to gain access to their credit cards, police said.
Erica Jolene Roadlander, 31, of Crown Point, was charged last week in Lake Superior Court with nine counts of theft.
Roadlander's alleged accomplice in at least one of the thefts was identified by police as Carolyn Lagrone Bradley, 31, of Chicago.
Bradley was charged with one count of theft.
Nine reports of pickpocketing were reported in the Hobart Walmart on Feb. 4. The thief was identified as a woman.
The most recent theft, on Aug. 14, was reported by a woman shopping at Target.
The Target shopper, whose stolen credit cards were used to make purchases at other discount stores and gas stations, identified Bradley in a surveillance video photo printed in The Times, court documents state.
Roadlander also was charged with three counts of theft in Porter County. Bradley was charged with aiding in a theft and aiding in a fraud in Porter County.
Police Detective Nicholas Wardrip was assigned to investigate the theft of a wallet by a woman shopping in the Carson Pirie Scott at Westfield Southlake mall March 16.
The shopper said her wallet was taken after she left it inside her unattended purse and was distracted by a couple who asked her for shopping assistance, documents state.
It was later discovered that the victim's credit card was used shortly after the theft at another store to make purchases.
Video surveillance was obtained of the fraudulent purchases and showed a woman matching the description made by the victim, court documents state.
The woman in the surveillance video was identified as Roadlander, documents state.
Please Wait…