Federal charges filed against alleged Kristi Noem purse thief

Federal prosecutors have filed charges against the man accused of stealing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s purse, including thousands of dollars she had in cash, earlier this month at The Capital Burger restaurant in Washington, DC.

Federal prosecutors have filed charges against the man accused of stealing Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s purse, including thousands of dollars she had in cash, earlier this month at The Capital Burger restaurant in Washington, DC. The man, Mario Bustamante Leiva, has been charged with wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and robbery. Leiva also appeared in DC’s Superior Court Monday on a fugitive warrant unrelated to the robbery. According to a statement by prosecutors Monday, Leiva is a Chilean national and resides in the US unlawfully. No lawyer is listed for Leiva and no date has been set for an arraignment. In federal court documents, prosecutors allege that in the past several weeks Leiva had stolen two other purses from victims around DC and that Leiva, who was unhoused before his arrest, reported recently that he was the victim of a robbery himself. “Thanks to the efforts of the Secret Service working in concert with the Metropolitan Police Department, this alleged thief was quickly identified, arrested, and, with the deft management of the Assistant US Attorney, charged,” US Attorney Edward Martin said in the statement. “He will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.” Prosecutors say that Leiva used his leg to push Noem’s purse – located on the ground – closer to him before bending down with his jacket in one hand, to take the purse in his other hand.