THIEVES snatched the purses of four women shoppers in a three-hour crime spree.

The thieves targeted browsing shoppers amid the bustling half-term crowds in Dewsbury town centre.

In the first theft, at 11.15am, a 54-year-old woman was in a Long Causeway charity shop realised her purse had been taken.

The thieves used a technique known as `dipping'. This means they put their hands into bags and steal purses and valuables.

In the second theft a 64-year-old woman in a shop on nearby Market Place at 12.15pm realised her purse was missing.

Around the same time a 73-year-old browsing in the busy market realised her bag had been `dipped' and her purse stolen.

Then at 2.15 a woman aged 50 in the town centre realised her purse had been taken.

The total value of the thefts was over £200.