SHOPPERS have been urged to take extra care with their purses and handbags in the run-up to Christmas.

The warning follows a spate of purse and bag snatches in Huddersfield town centre over the last few days.

Police say people travelling into the town to do Christmas shopping often get careless, leaving hand- bags open and purses on show.

Elderly people are particularly vulnerable to thieves, who often travel from outside the town to target people during the Christmas season.

In the last couple of days purses and handbags have been stolen from the Packhorse Centre, in the Bon Marché shop on New Street and at a bus stop near Queensgate Market.

Shoppers are often jostled while in queues waiting to pay for goods or while getting off buses.

Pc Dave Mc Sweeney, of Huddersfield Police, says shoppers should:

* Keep purses in a zipped compartment at the bottom of a bag

* Carry shoulder bags diagonally across the body, rather than on the shoulder

* Make sure their bag is at the front of their body when in a queue, not behind

* Keep credit cards separately from a chequebook

* Spread valuables about your body; for example house keys in a pocket, mobile phone in a bag and a , purse in a zipped coat pocket

* Take extra care when talking on a mobile phone or texting in a public place

* Walk and act confidently when walking in dimly-lit public places.

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