Beware of cemetery purse-snatchers

Please consider my experience as a possible sub-story to the Illinois cemetery scandals.

I went out to visit my mom at Queen of Heaven Cemetery and while I spent 10 minutes at her grave, someone stole my purse from my car. I rolled up the windows but forgot to lock it. I was never more than 50 yards away, which means they did this right in front of me. A woman walked past my car while I was there, but I did not see her enter my car.

Please let anyone you know who goes to cemeteries to LOCK their doors no matter what. The amount of work and headache I had by the end of the day was ridiculous. They had everything - driver's license, credit cards, gift cards, cell phone, checkbook, bills and letters that I was going to mail later in the day, you name it. By the time I got home at 2 p.m. (after filing a police report and checking garbage cans throughout the cemetery) they had already swiped all my credit cards at two nearby gas stations on Mannheim Road and placed two cell phone calls. I had all cards canceled by 2:30 p.m. and my cell phone service shut off. Hopefully they will be able to trace these people through the cell phone calls they made and the cameras at the gas stations.

It just disgusts me that people are sitting at cemeteries preying on people who are either visiting or burying loved ones. It makes me sick. I just wanted people to be informed and really be aware of what is going on around you. I'm the one nerd who always locks my doors while I'm filling my car with gas or parked in a friend's driveway can't believe I didn't lock it at the cemetery.

Lisa Renee Hindel

Palatine