Braingle: 'The Purse Snatcher' Brain Teaser

The Purse Snatcher

Mystery teasers are little stories where you need to figure out what happened based on the given clues.

Puzzle ID:	#24736
Fun:	(2.82)
Difficulty:	(1.62)
Category:	Mystery
Submitted By:	dolphingurl12

"I was standing outside the store waiting for my husband to bring the car around, when all of a sudden a man, I didn't see anything but his back, snatched my purse!" The woman was furiously telling the police officers the story of her purse snatching.

A supposed witness, who claimed he had been sitting on a nearby bench, told what he had seen. "This woman was standing about 4 feet in front of me, holding a few shopping bags, plus her purse. A large man dressed in jeans, a black shirt, and leather coat snatched her purse and hurried into the fire escape door on the side of the building."

A few hours later the purse was found in the witness' car and he was arrested. How did the police know he was the purse snatcher?

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Comments

lycanthrope Jul 21, 2005	I love a mystery. Got this one without the hint. Keep them coming!
burfly01 Jul 21, 2005	ok well not to bad but really.. not toop hard but who whould think of that?
froggygg Jul 21, 2005	Great mystery!
humpmehard Jul 22, 2005	Ohhhh, I thought maybe he couldn't see the side of the building from where he was sitting, so it was a little confusing for me. I guess since that was a wrong answer the way you wrote it didn't really matter, since the answer doesn't even come close! i'm confusing myself again, so ill just say Great Teaser and move on!
sniperkid990 Jul 23, 2005	good 1
spongedum4 Jul 24, 2005	good one - i got it right off the bat without the hint, even though i clicked on it
SaturnCat08 Jul 25, 2005	Good One dolphingurl12!Keep the Mystery teasers coming!
(user deleted) Jul 25, 2005	Good One!!
marianj79 Jul 25, 2005	i thought that since the witness was 4 feet behind the woman and she could only see the theif's back then the witness would not have known the color of the guys shirt since from the back he would only have seen the jacket....i think i over thought this one....
toxic_happiness Jul 29, 2005	whoa whew!
smurfy Aug 02, 2005	I thought the same thing about not being able to see the guy's shirt Good Teaser! Keep up the good work!
thecowancannons Aug 02, 2005	that one was good better and harder than "the missing earrings" good work though peace out
iLuVcOwS_00 Aug 03, 2005	yeah i thought that since she was standing on the edge he was beside her and couldnt tell the color of the mans shirt... another good answer...
hit_the_sand Aug 18, 2005	Good one! I didn't get it until after I read the hint! See, your teasers aren't all easy! Keep em comin and don't forget to smile!
dolphingurl12 Aug 18, 2005	everybody says this is my worst one..
dolphingurl12 Aug 18, 2005	no wait, i got them confused nevermind
babygrl329 Aug 22, 2005	ooooo i didnt get it?
Celanba Sep 03, 2005	Pretty easy.
(user deleted) Sep 05, 2005	Very simple solution, but nice storyline. Anyone with police training will tell you that a story with too many details is the hallmark of a liar. Not bad.
bowen Sep 08, 2005	Good job! I like a good mystery story.
teaser55 Sep 12, 2005	Used to sneek in the movies through a fire escape door,after it had been opened from inside.Good one.
chickybaby3 Sep 20, 2005	I did not know that, but it makes sense to me now!
AZTTT Oct 12, 2005	I must have my Sherlock Holmes hat on today. I got this one!
BOOKLOVER1 Nov 13, 2005	omg do harder ones
BOOKLOVER1 Nov 14, 2005	these are so lame
dolphingurl12 Nov 16, 2005	Then don't read them.
BOOKLOVER1 Nov 18, 2005	I can't help it I just click on ones that I think will be good and then I read it and think i wonder who wrote this?
dolphingurl12 Nov 19, 2005	I did.
rtytherleigh Jan 22, 2006	It was quite hard
choptlivva Feb 19, 2006	Well.... you got me on that one Dolphingurl!!! The "4 ft. away" detail threw me off, so I never even thought about the fire escape door!! So I say GREAT JOB!!!
didida Jul 07, 2006	On a roll! Didn't need the hint but i checked anyway to c if it would confirm my suspicions! Great 1 dolphingurl!
achnid Aug 31, 2006	not all fire escapes are one way. This is especialy true with older buildings.
achnid Aug 31, 2006	not all fire escapes are one way. This is especialy true with older buildings. He could have also pre set the fire escape door to be able to be opened from the outside before hand.
tintiniscool Oct 08, 2006	I thought since she saw the back of the person, she recognized the man or something... This was fun!
flamehead Oct 12, 2006	U r really good at mysteries, I've read a few you've done and I could only get one and that was because I read it in a magazine, but these r good.
scallio May 08, 2007	I assumed the witness would have only seen the snatcher after the grab while heading away and the color of his shirt would not have been known. Fun story.
Madelulabelle Jun 12, 2007	I was also thinking along the lines of the snatchers clothing. Good teaser Dolphingurl!
preppygirl Jul 18, 2007	i thought it was cuz if a guy was 4 feet behind her why wouldnt he help he like duh...Why would he just sit there and watch the person in front of him be mugged
xoshortie522 Jan 27, 2008	That was easy if u read it good enuff but if u didnt kno that fire escape doors open from the inside only then u wouldnt have gotten it
carawilson Jul 08, 2008	good one! although i've never tried to go in (or out) of a fire escape door so i didn't know that... i thought it had something to do with whether or not she was holding bags when it happened or something...dunno totally wrong track i guess
precious1026 Feb 14, 2010	Good mysteries reveal most if not all basic clues, the door opening from the inside, instead of the outside is not something that the writer had Reason or Cause to reveal. Its a good story, written carefully, but lacks Mysterious logic. Although the story lacks this reasoning, you had the ability to put it to paper to make it work or not. You did an excellent job. Good Teaser.
trewq Aug 11, 2010	i thought the alarm would go off if a fire escape door was opened..
Radd_stuff Dec 01, 2010	cool