Police Say Bystanders Detained Purse Snatcher At Decatur Library

 This information comes from Decatur and DeKalb County police reports.

Decautr police arrested an accused purse-snatcher March 29 with the help of construction workers and people standing outside the Decatur Library.

A woman told police she went to the library with her father-in-law midday and placed a Louis Vuitton pocketbook on a chair.

Two men approached and one grabbed the purse and ran out of the library toward Church Street. The woman said she kicked off her shoes and pursued.

She couldn't keep up with the suspects and went back to the library, where she was met by a woman holding the purse.

The second woman said she was sitting on a bench in front of the library and heard someone yell, "Stop him, stop him!"

The woman saw a man running on the east side the library near the book return drop. After he fell and got up, the woman grabbed the purse. The man fell again and people in front of the library stopped him. He was detained by construction workers in the area and a Stone Mountain police investigator.

Police charged Conrad Clark, 18, of Riverdale with robbery and giving a false date of birth.

The purse was valued at $1,000, a Louis Vuitton wallet inside at $500. The second man was not located. He was described as a black male in his late teens. He had a medium complexion, was about 5 feet 8 inches and wore a khaki shirt.

DeKalb County police arrested a man the morning of April 11 and charged him with indecent exposure.

Officers went to the 700 block of Arcadai Avenue, between Decatur and Avondale Estates, because somebody reported a man exposing himself.

An officer saw a man fitting the description of the suspect and picked him up. The man slurred his speech, had no identification and didn't give a home address.

The complainant said he'd dropped his kids at a day care when the man walked up to him, said something indecipherable and started stroking his genitals.

Debede Johnson, 58, was charged with indecent exposure and booked into the county jail.

A house in the 300 block of South Columbia Drive was burglarized March 31, Decatur police said.

The residents said they left the house about 10:15 a.m. and returned shortly before 1 p.m. to find the rear door open with the lock intact but the frame damaged.

A television from a child's bedroom was found on the floor of the hall. Missing from other rooms in the house were an iPad, an Apple Macbook Pro Laptop and a girls pink and gray back pack.

A man and woman banged on the Decatur Police Department door about 1:50 a.m. March 29. Police found the woman bleeding from her mouth and nose.

She said she visited an apartment in the 1500 block of Commerce Drive about 5:30 p.m. March 28 and was pressured to have sex with men for cash.

She said she refused, walked out and headed toward the Marta station. One of the men from the apartment followed her and demanded money. She said she dropped $60 she was carrying in her hand and the man started punching her in the face.

Another man riding by on a bicycle approached and the assailant fled.

Police started searching for the man, using a description from the man on the bike, and made an arrest on Commerce Street. He had $50 in bloody bills in his pocket and a swollen hand. He was charged with robbery.

A 2000 Honda Civic was reported stolen March 28 by a resident of Decatur Town Houses in the 300 block of Adair Street. The resident said he's not sure if he locked the car. Decatur police said four Hondas were stolen between March 16-22.

A Decatur Library employee told police a wallet was stolen from her purse April 3, Decatur police said.

The employee said she put her purse into the rear work room about 9:15 a.m. and noticed the wallet missing when she left about noon. She said she believed $75 had been charged to a credit card before she could cancel it and that charges had been placed on other carsds as well.

About $10 cash was inside the wallet.