A Philadelphia man was arrested earlier this month after police said he stole a woman’s purse outside a Montgomery Township wholesale club and later attempted to use her credit card to purchase gift cards.
Montgomery Township Police said Brian Edward Davis, 58, of the 1300 block of West Silver Street, was charged with felony access device fraud, felony forgery, misdemeanor theft, misdemeanor retail theft, misdemeanor identity theft and several summary traffic violations following the August 12 incident.
Purse theft at BJ’s Wholesale Club
Police said officers were dispatched around 2:12 p.m. to BJ’s Wholesale Club on Cowpath Road for a reported theft. The victim told police she was leaving the store when a man, later identified as Davis, grabbed her purse and fled, police said.
A witness chased Davis, police said, and recovered the purse after he dropped it while fleeing. The victim later found her Discover credit card was missing.
Suspect identified and arrested
Police said Davis fled the scene in a black 2015 Kia Optima with no license plate, heading south on Bethlehem Pike. Multiple motorists called 911 to report the driver weaving through traffic in a similar vehicle, according to authorities.
Officers located the Kia parked in the Wegmans parking lot on Bethlehem Pike and made contact with Davis, who matched the suspect description, police said. The victim positively identified him at the scene, police said.
Investigators said Davis’s vehicle displayed an expired Pennsylvania registration plate upside down in the rear windshield, had dark window tint and was suspended for insurance cancellation.
Attempted gift card purchase
Police said Davis attempted to use the victim’s stolen Discover card at Wegmans, where he tried to purchase two Visa gift cards totaling $713.90. Officers recovered the stolen credit card underneath Davis’s vehicle, according to the affidavit.
Davis was taken into custody and arraigned on the charges.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
