Suspects arrested for targeting elderly women at Scottsdale grocery stores and stealing their wallets: police

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - Two suspects who police say would work together to distract elderly women at Scottsdale grocery stores and steal their wallets and phones have been arrested.

Scottsdale Police say four incidents happened on Sept. 9. During each theft, the victim said she was distracted by a woman talking to her. When the conversation ended, the victim realized her belongings were missing. The suspects would then use the victim's credit cards to buy gift cards.

The reported thefts happened at the following locations:

Albertson's near Thomas and Scottsdale Roads
Bashas' near Granite Reef Road and McDonald Drive
Albertson's near Indian Bend and Hayden Roads
Fry's near Miller and Indian School Roads

Surveillance footage from the Fry's incident shows a woman approaching the victim to speak to her, and a second woman would steal items from the victim's purse.

The suspects, 27-year-old Toniesha Odom and 26-year-old Ahzane Williams, were arrested by police during a traffic stop. They were booked into jail and are accused of aggravated identity theft.

Women accused of identity theft targeting seniors

Two women in Arizona are behind bars for an alleged scheme targeting female senior citizens at supermarkets and stealing from them.

"Additional credit cards, gift cards, and ID cards were located with other victim’s names inside of the car," police said. "Through extensive investigative efforts and follow-up, detectives were able to locate additional potential victims."

Police are asking anyone who believes they may be a victim of this scheme to contact them at 480-312-5000.