December 14, 2006

Holiday thieves out in full force: Costco Almaden targeted

By Jeanne Carbone
Staff Writer

Thieves roamed the aisles of Costco on Almaden Expressway Dec. 1, stealing wallets out of several women’s purses. Willow Glen Lorie resident Bowlby was one of the victims.

“My purse was in my shopping cart,” said Bowlby, who was shopping for a holiday party. “I admit I was somewhat preoccupied, but I only turned my back for a second. In that time, they unzipped my purse and took out the wallet. I’m pretty savvy, but it was a wake-up call.”

While Bowlby reported the theft to the Costco security manager, two other women also reported that their wallets were stolen out of their purses. Bowlby quickly canceled her credit cards and alerted the credit reporting agencies. She also filed an online San Jose Police Department [SJPD] report.

Bowlby admits she carries the trendy, larger bags, and has plans to change to smaller purses when she shops. The normally safety-conscious Bowlby was focused on shopping for a holiday party later that day.

SJPD Capt. Jack Farmer suggested that the thieves took advantage of an “opportunistic moment.” “We advise people to keep their possessions close to them,” said Farmer. “If they’re walking the parks, keep them locked in the trunk. If there are lockers, use them. San Jose has close to a million people and this type of crime can happen anywhere.”

Another woman, Darby Mason of Blossom Valley, had her wallet stolen around the same time while shopping at nearby Trader Joe’s.

Costco security supervisor [who requested to remain anonymous] said that this is unfortunate, but not the norm for the store in the Almaden Shopping Center.

“Fortunately, it’s not a daily occurrence,” he said. “Maybe once a week someone reports a wallet stolen. This week so far, there hasn’t been any. I tell all the shoppers to keep their purses close to them.”

Word swiftly spread through St Timothy’s Church, where Bowlby is a member of the mothers’ group and alerted many of her friends by e-mail.

“I shop at Costco all the time,” said friend and Almaden resident Annette Mackaness. “I am very careful about my purse now since my July purse-snatching experience. I keep it in front of me all the time and if I need to leave my cart to grab something down an aisle or have to turn my back on my cart to browse, I put my purse on my shoulder.”

For Bowlby, the unfortunate shopping experience turned out all right. When Bowlby called the store the following day, Costco security initially reported that her wallet had not been found. But Bowlby didn’t give up hope. “I prayed to God if there was any way I could just get my wallet back with my license, pictures, etc,” said Bowlby.

Then came telephone call. “On my cell phone there was a message from the security supervisor saying he had my wallet. He said he didn’t know how it got on his desk. No one took credit for finding it and it was the only one found. The only thing missing was the cash. [It’s] my own little Christmas miracle!”