Let's call this one the floppy-hatted filcher

On Wednesday afternoon (December 8), Jill Marr of Clairemont was getting groceries at the Smart & Final on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard with her houseguest from Atlanta, Stacy Allen.

Marr said on December 9, "We were getting groceries and the woman who was behind us in line stole my friend's wallet, right off the little check-out table where the debit-card reader is located at the cash register. It was fast and crafty and definitely planned."

Neither of them noticed the wallet was missing until a few hours later. Marr said, "We started making calls and searching. When we went into the Smart & Final store the next morning, the manager was extremely helpful. She was able to pull up the security video of the exact time we were there and it shows the woman grabbing my friend's wallet. She then paid for her groceries in two separate transactions. More than likely one of them was paid for with the money she stole from my friend….

"We were a good mark: we had two kids with us who were jumping around. We were distracted," Marr lamented. "My friend also put her phone and her wallet on the small check-out table. The woman made sure to get behind us in line and even talked with us a little. She was wearing a floppy hat, which the manager told us that thieves [wear] because you can't then pull up a good image on the surveillance video. She said this is very common….

"It's especially sad for me," said Marr, "because my friend is visiting from Atlanta. I know this can happen anywhere but it's terrible that it happened in my community."

Marr described the thief as being "middle-aged, medium height, brunette with an indeterminable accent, and very pushy and aggressive. She made certain that she was behind us in line and ultimately had to get into my friend's personal space in order to snatch the wallet right out from underneath her."

Allen filled out a police report online on December 9. The police are in possession of the video surveillance of the crime and are investigating the incident. If you have any information, contact the San Diego Police Department at 858-531-2545 and refer to police report number 15709138.