The Shameful Tactic These Women Allegedly Used to Secretly Snatch a Victim's Wallet

Police say that two alleged thieves recently used prayer to distract a Walmart shopper in a successful ploy to steal her credit cards.

Shayla Sutherland and Jessica Pina are accused of asking the woman to pray with them at the Acworth, Georgia, store before snatching the contents of her wallet. They reportedly later used the stolen cards to purchase electronics and other items.

Authorities claim that Pina intentionally distracted the woman, while Sutherland committed the act during the November 12 incident, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

The two are accused of preying on at least five victims overall, using various methods of distraction to secure and spend thousands of dollars, according to WXIA-TV.

"The two suspects in all of these cases would use some type of tactic distracting victims to focus their attention elsewhere," Acworth Police Captain Mark Cheatham told the outlet.

In an interview with WGLC-TV, the officer explained that the alleged thieves would gain trust, then wait for victims to turn their backs before stealing from them.

"I believe they were just building a rapport with the victims," Cheatam told the outlet. "Might have mentioned something about prayer or Christmas time, and they use that to gain their trust."

In a separate November 29 incident, Sutherland is facing robbery and simple battery charges for allegedly reaching over a bathroom stall, stealing a woman's purse and then kicking a man who tried to stop her from leaving the store, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Sutherland and Pina both face a theft by taking charge as well as card theft and fraud charges.

(H/T: WXIA-TV)