A WOMAN chased a man through the street after he snatched her friend’s handbag from the table at a Southbourne restaurant.

Julia Bell from Boscombe went out for dinner with her two friends on Thursday, August 15, at Baffi in Southbourne.

The group was asked to move outside to finish their drinks and settle the bill. Moments later, a designer handbag was swiped off the table.

Julia said: “I don’t think I have ever run so fast in my life, my friends said I looked like Usain Bolt.”

Despite several people chasing him, including a man on a bike and a woman in a car, the thief managed to escape from the scene of the crime.

The bag, a tanned Mulberry Lily Grain Veg, belonged to Julia’s friend, who received it alongside a matching purse as a 40th birthday present from her parents, valued at over £1,000.

(Image: Julia Bell)

The bag contained a Mulberry purse containing multiple cards, a driver’s license, car keys, house keys, and reading glasses.

Julia said: “My friend was quite shaken up, and I felt quite angry, to be honest.

“He was just a horrible, opportunistic, piece of scum.”

Luckily, Julia’s friend still had her phone, so could cancel her bank cards, and call her husband to bring a spare car key.   However, because the bag contained her driver’s licence with an address, she was forced to change all the locks at her house.

Julia added: “I was pretty shocked that something like this would happen in Southbourne.

“I have lived in London for 19 years so had learnt never to leave your handbag on the table when you are sat in the street.”

The nearby One Stop reportedly obtained CCTV footage of the incident unveiling, which hopefully can aid the police investigation.

A spokesperson for Dorset Police said: “We received a report that a handbag was stolen from a woman at Baffi restaurant in Southbourne Grove in Bournemouth between 8.50pm and 9.15pm on Thursday, August 15 2024.

“Enquiries into the incident are ongoing. No arrests have been made.”