Woman arrested in wallet thefts at Henderson grocery stores

Henderson police said they have arrested a 61-year-old woman in connection with a series of wallet thefts “targeting the elderly” at Henderson grocery stores.

Valerie Ray was arrested on Jan. 10 after she was identified as a suspect in the thefts, the Henderson Police Department said in a statement Tuesday.

Investigators determined that the suspect would “target elderly victims” in grocery stores and take their wallets from inside their purses when they would “momentarily turn away from their carts.”

The victims in the case noticed their wallets were missing from their purses as they approached the store register to check out, police said.

Ray initially faced 43 counts of burglary, 53 counts of using a credit card, debit card or ID without the owner’s consent, 11 counts of obtaining or possessing a credit card or debit card without the owner’s consent, and 10 counts of abuse of an older or vulnerable person, police said.

She was charged on Jan. 15 with 12 counts of burglary and 23 counts of obtaining or possessing a credit card or debit card without the owner’s consent, court records show.

Ray was transferred to the Clark County Detention Center on Thursday, where she remained Tuesday with a $250,000 bail, jail records show. She is due to appear in court on Jan. 29.

Further information about the burglaries was not immediately available Tuesday.

Anyone with information about the case may contact Henderson police at 702-267-4911 or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.