Women Hold Down Suspected Purse Thief In Greenfield

GREENFIELD (CBS) -- Three female bystanders held down a suspected purse snatcher in Greenfield on Sunday until police arrived.

Greenfield police said they responded to a report of a purse robbery at the John W. Olver Transit Center at 11 a.m., where they found three women holding down a man carrying a black bag.

Dong Zhou, 32, of New York City, was arrested and charged with unarmed robbery and assault and battery. Police say Zhou asked several women for money, and when they refused, he tried to steal a bag, but the women were able to wrestle it away from him. Zhou then grabbed a second bag and ran toward the street, but the women bystanders caught him, according to police.

Police say the purse owner suffered minor hand injuries.

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