TRUMBULL — A Waterbury man was charged Thursday with stealing a purse from a vehicle in January, according to the Trumbull Police Department.
Samuel Lopez, 26, of West Grove Street, was served an arrest warrant while in the custody of the Department of Corrections for unrelated crimes.
The arrest followed an extensive investigation by Trumbull Police detectives into the theft which took place outside a Main Street business.
On Jan. 5, at approximately 6:30 p.m., police responded to a report of a stolen purse from an unlocked car parked at 5893 Main St. The victim had left the vehicle to enter a nearby establishment and returned to find their vehicle’s door ajar and purse missing.
Investigators reviewed surveillance footage that showed a white Mercedes parking next to the victim’s vehicle.
The footage captured a suspect, later identified as Lopez, exiting the Mercedes, stealing the purse, and then driving away.
Detectives discovered the Mercedes had been rented by Lopez at the time of the theft.
Lopez faces charges of third-degree burglary and third-degree larceny.
He was held on a $25,000 bond and arraigned in Bridgeport Superior Court.
