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An elderly woman gets the fright of her life outside her front door.  Someone came up behind her and stole her purse. 

Police say there have been two purse snatchings in the same area within the last 24 hours.  Both happened at different apartment complexes near 108^th & Fort St. between Thursday evening and Friday morning. 

71-year-old Joye Scott was coming home after work Thursday night when she could feel something wasn't right.  She saw a car pull up, and as she went to the door of her apartment a man grabbed the bag and purse she was holding and ran. 

"I was horrified.  As a matter of fact my mouth was open until I got to my door.  I just couldn't even scream or anything it scared me so bad,” Scott explained.  "I imagine I'm not the only one that they've done this to, I’m sure I’m not." 

The suspect was able to get away with her purse, but dropped the bag. 

OPD says officers have a heightened awareness for these sorts of crimes.  They say people should go places in groups, park close to lighted and busy areas.  Plus keep purses close to your body or don't carry one at all. 

"If they see a large purse or a bag, it's not a select group that they target, it's just a crime of opportunity," said Lt. Marcia Janucik with OPD’s Northwest Precinct.  "If you have a small purse or if you can just put your credit card, or cash, or id in your pocket.  So you don't have that extra target." 

Scott says she'll have to replace her driver's license, checkbook, and cell phone but her keys were in her pocket, and there wasn't much else in her purse. 

"So he got a wallet with no money in it,” Scott concluded. "I hope that this man and his accomplice, I hope that they're caught immediately and prosecuted to the fullest." 

Joye described her purse snatcher as a black male, at least 6 feet tall wearing a white shirt and khaki colored bib overalls.  It’s unclear if the two crimes are related.  If you have any information call OPD Crimestoppers at 402-444-STOP.