Additional Coverage:
- Man in US ‘illegally’ busted for swiping DHS chief Kristi Noem’s Gucci purse containing $3K in cash (irishstar.com)
A suspect has been arrested in the theft of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s purse, which contained $3,000 in cash and various personal items, including her passport and DHS access badge. The incident occurred Sunday night while Secretary Noem was dining with her family in Washington, D.C.
U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Ed Martin, confirmed the arrest and stated that the suspect is in the country illegally. A second suspect, also unlawfully in the country, remains at large.
Authorities believe the theft was opportunistic rather than targeted. “It was frankly, it was a nice looking purse,” Martin commented, adding that there’s no indication Secretary Noem’s position motivated the crime. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is now involved in the investigation.
Martin emphasized the suspect’s apparent experience, describing him as “not an amateur” but “a thief, that knew how to do this.” Security footage reportedly shows the suspect strategically positioning himself near Secretary Noem before surreptitiously hooking the purse with his foot and concealing it under his jacket.
Secretary Noem, preoccupied with her four young grandchildren at the time, only realized the theft after leaving the table. She recounted the incident on a recent podcast, describing how the thief “hooked it with his foot, dragged it a few steps away, dropped a coat over it, and took it.”