DINWIDDIE COUNTY, Va. -- After an 82-year-old woman had hundreds stolen from her wallet while shopping at a Food Lion in Dinwiddie County, a community member decided to help her out.
Sheriff's deputies in Dinwiddie are now looking for the suspect who targeted the woman while she was shopping.
"There's so many good people in the world as well as the bad people," the woman said.
The 82-year-old woman has seen both the good side and bad side of people recently.
"I think it's a terrible crime," she said.
The woman was inside a Dinwiddie County Food Lion on June 23 when she says she was approached from behind.
"This woman was standing beside me and she said, I'm looking for some mixed Jell-O. I said, I don't know about that," she recalled.
Just a few minutes later, she had another encounter.
"I went to the meat counter and I was looking at some beef and she came up behind me and when I picked up a package and looked at it, she said that meat is expensive," the woman said.
Just like that, investigators say that the wallet was stolen. However, just moments later, the alleged thief returned a nearly empty wallet back into the pocketbook. The woman didn't have the chance to notice until she reached the cash register.
"I had $3 in my pocketbook and I knew I had at least $400."
Investigators said that the suspect walked out of the grocery store.
As word spreads about the theft, local real estate agent Jeremy Cecchettini paid a visit to the victim.
"Young guy came to the door and he was a nice looking guy and he said, I've got something for you," the woman said.
He handed her $800, of which he gave $500.
"I didn't know that people could be so nice and so free-hearted to do that," the woman said.
After the entire experience, the woman is giving advice for shoppers to help avoid a similar situation.
"Look at your surroundings and be careful and look to see if anybody keeps following you. Just watch your pocketbook."
The victim said that the next time she goes shopping, she plans to have a wallet that goes around her neck and stays right in front of her.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at (804) 861-1212.
