Woman foils attempted purse snatching by man posing as apartment management

A woman was the victim of an attempted purse snatching in her own Chinatown apartment on Tuesday, police said.

The suspect, who knocked on the 59-year-old victim's door in the 800 block of Pacific Street about 10:30 a.m., told her he worked with the apartment management and asked if he could use a pen and paper, police said.

As the victim went to get pen and paper, the suspect reportedly entered the apartment and grabbed a purse off a hook, police said.

After the woman struck the suspect in the back, he dropped the purse and fled on foot.

The incident is similar to another burglary that happened in Chinatown last Friday.

In that case, a man knocked on an apartment door and said he was there to spray for bugs. Instead, he stole some cash from a woman's purse before kicking her in the stomach and fleeing the scene, police said.

The incident took place about six blocks away from Tuesday's attempted robbery.

In both cases the suspect is described as a man aged 30 to 40 years old.

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