noun

• A thief who steals a handbag from the person carrying it.

  ‘In a violent altercation in Barcelona with a Moroccan bag snatcher last month I came out with a torrent of extremely filthy Italian which I did not know I knew.’

  More example sentences

  • ‘The constables were patrolling Redfern, on the lookout for a bag snatcher, when they came across the body at the end of a lane.’
  • ‘The first thing bag snatchers do is throw away anything that might identify the owner.’
  • ‘In the UK street-skaters are seen as nascent bag-snatchers and hit-and-run assassins in training.’
  • ‘In France, Britons are warned to look out for bag snatchers, muggers, burglars and pickpockets, all targeting tourists.’
  • ‘One of the interesting facts about travel is that you are generally safer - at least from petty crime - in places where tourists do not go, as the pickpockets and bag snatchers that prey on tourists do not exist in such places.’
  • ‘I've become acutely aware of pickpockets and bag snatchers.’
  • ‘Cyclists in York are being warned to be on their guard after ride-by bag snatchers struck in the city again.’
  • ‘Magdalena identified her bag, and the bag snatchers.’
  • ‘Extra police officers have been patrolling the streets of Bolton town centre over the festive season in a crackdown on pickpockets, car thieves and bag snatchers.’
  • ‘Elderly people have been warned about a serial bag snatcher after a 90-year-old woman became the latest town centre victim.’
  • ‘The bag snatcher was described as white, in his 30s, with fair, sandy hair.’
  • ‘The scheme is part of a campaign to bring people back to the parks, which in the past have provided hiding places for under-age drinkers, drug addicts, sex attackers and bag snatchers.’
  • ‘There were two vehicles in the area at the time, on patrol for a bag snatcher, and they arrived at the scene minutes after the accident.’
  • ‘There were certainly challenges that came with living here: such as having to be on constant watch for hijackers and bag snatchers and home invaders.’
  • ‘Someone who steals from the vulnerable, such as a bag snatcher targeting a pensioner, pregnant women or tourist, could be given a community order, although the starting point would be 18 weeks in jail.’
  • ‘Police have nabbed a would-be bag snatcher but the identity of his intended victim remains a mystery.’

  Synonyms

  thief, petty thief, sneak thief