Vancouver police are warning area residents of a man whom they say has gotten into fender-benders with elderly drivers only to steal their wallets when they pulled over.
The first incident occurred at about 6:45 p.m. on Dec. 4 when a 77-year-old woman got into a fender-bender on the northbound onramp to Interstate 5 from Jantzen Beach, Vancouver Police Department spokeswoman Kim Kapp said.
The woman kept driving, but noticed the vehicle following her and so she took an exit and pulled into the Arco gas station on East 39th Street and Main Street, Kapp said.
Once there, a man who identified himself as Mike got out of his car and claimed the damage was his fault. While they looked at damage and exchanged information, the man stole the woman’s wallet, which was on her front passenger seat, Kapp said.
The woman didn’t notice it was gone until the next day, when she reported it to police.
An officer took a similar report a week later when an 80-year-old woman told police that she had been driving near Southeast McGillivray Boulevard and 125th Avenue when she was tapped by a vehicle at about 3:45 p.m. on Dec. 11, Kapp said.
The two vehicles pulled over and a man, who again identified himself as Mike, approached the woman’s vehicle and apologized for the crash, Kapp said.
He told the woman that he worked for a paint shop and that he could fix the damage if he got the paint code from her glove compartment.
While the woman was inspecting the damage, the man stole her purse from the front passenger seat, Kapp said. The woman noticed her purse missing when she got home and called police.
Detectives believe that the man in both cases is the same person as the methods used to deceive the victims were so similar, Kapp said.
The man was described as either white or Hispanic, about 5 feet 6 inches tall and about 160 pounds with short black hair, Kapp said.
One victim described his vehicle as a newer white boxy car while the other described it as a dark Ford, Kapp said.
Anyone who believes they were a victim of the man or who may have information on the case is asked to call 311 or the agency during normal business hours, 360-487-7355.
