A man who walked into an Aberdeen Walgreens with a dog is accused of swiping a woman's purse right out of her shopping cart, carrying it to his vehicle, moving the vehicle to another spot in the parking lot, and then walking back to hand it over to a store employee — with the cash and checks missing. Police say store security cameras showed him taking the purse, and now they want the public's help putting a name to the face behind the backward black hat and distinctive mustache.
The theft happened at the Walgreens on Beards Hill Road in Aberdeen, according to WMAR 2 News. The woman had briefly stepped away from her cart near the front entrance to carry other items outside, leaving her purse behind. It was a matter of seconds, but it was enough. Security video reportedly shows the man taking the purse without hesitation while his dog stood nearby.
From there, the story takes its strangest turn. Rather than simply vanishing, the man carried the purse to his vehicle, moved it to another spot in the parking lot, and then walked back into the store to hand the purse to an employee, the station reports. Aberdeen Police Capt. C. William Reiber confirmed the suspect entered with his dog and later returned the bag himself.
What Was Missing From the Purse
By the time the purse made its way back to its owner, several items were gone. Checks, $100 in cash and the woman's driver's license had all been removed, according to the station's report. Investigators have not said what became of those items or whether any of them have turned up since.
Police are describing the suspect as a man wearing a black hat backwards, black glasses and sporting what Reiber called a very distinct mustache. Aberdeen police are asking anyone who recognizes the man — or even his dog — to contact the Aberdeen Police Department.
A Reminder About Securing Valuables
Reiber used the incident to offer shoppers a word of caution. He said people should secure their valuables whether they're in a cart, on their person or locked inside a vehicle while running errands. It's a simple habit, but one that this case shows can make all the difference in a crowded parking lot.
The station's report also frames the incident against a broader backdrop, noting that retail theft continues to be a growing concern across the country. The national picture, however, is more complicated than a straight upward line. The Southern Maryland Chronicle reported that the National Retail Federation tracked an 18% jump in shoplifting incidents nationally in 2024 compared with the prior year, with threats or violence during those incidents up 17% — but then saw shoplifting incidents fall 12.4% in 2025 compared with 2024, with retail merchandise theft down 8.1% over the same span.
Maryland's own numbers stood out within that national swing. Per the same outlet, shoplifting incidents rose 25.55% statewide from 2023 to 2024, well above the NRF's reported 18% national increase for that period. The Chronicle also noted that 63% of retailers say they report fewer than half of theft incidents to police, suggesting the true scope of the problem may be larger than official figures capture.
Elsewhere in Maryland, authorities have been chasing bigger and more organized versions of the same problem. CBS News Baltimore reported that Prince George's County police arrested six people accused of running a retail-theft ring that stretched across Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Washington, D.C. Investigators believed the group had stolen more than $500,000 worth of merchandise from over 100 businesses, and recovered $20,000 in goods still bearing their security tags. That investigation began in February 2025 after an uptick in retail thefts countywide, and it led Prince George's County police to stand up an Organized Retail Theft Task Force in February 2026.
The Aberdeen case carries none of that scale, but it echoes a pattern familiar to Walgreens locations elsewhere in the state. Montgomery County police once investigated a theft at a Walgreens in Silver Spring's Aspen Hill area, releasing surveillance video in hopes of identifying suspects there as well. For now, the Aberdeen case remains an open investigation, and police have not said whether anyone has been identified or arrested.
