Witnesses catch man who stole purse off woman’s arm in Kent mall parking lot

About a dozen people came to the rescue of a woman after a man reportedly ripped her purse off her arm in the Great Wall Shopping Mall parking lot in Kent.

Several people started to chase the man shortly after the woman screamed for help at about 3:25 p.m. on Oct. 29 at the mall, 18230 East Valley Highway, according to court documents. They were able to tackle the man just a short distance from the car and two men held him on the ground until Kent Police arrived and took the man into custody.

King County prosecutors charged Jalyn E. Wallace, 20, of Kent, with first-degree attempted robbery after he allegedly ripped a purse off the woman’s arm and knocked her to the ground. Wallace remains in the county jail at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent with bail set at $105,000. He also is being held for violations of conditions of a sentence for a 2019 residential burglary conviction. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Nov. 16 in King County Superior Court in Kent.

“The defendant’s brazen attempt to retain the victim’s purse by force, pushing her to the ground and causing significant injury to her knees in the process, demonstrates he is substantially likely to commit a violent offense if released,” wrote Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Marlana Kuper in charging papers.

The woman told police that she had finished shopping and went back to her vehicle with her shopping cart of items. She placed the items in the trunk and closed it. A man then appeared and ripped her purse off her arm. She said she grabbed the man’s arm as he tried to run away and he shoved her to the ground, which caused injury to her knees. The officer noted in his report that the cuts he saw on her knees indicated Wallace shoved her with a significant amount of force.

Paramedics transported the woman to Valley Medical Center in Renton for treatment.

A witness told police that he heard a woman scream for help and saw people chasing a man with a purse, according to court documents. He ran over to assist and helped hold the man on the ground until officers arrived. Numerous people had called 911 to report a man had tried to steal a woman’s purse and several people were holding the man on the ground.

When officers arrived, they observed approximately a dozen people standing around Wallace who was being held down by two men. Wallace, who is 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighs about 180 pounds, was being held face down in some bark in the parking lot, about 10 feet away from the woman’s car. Officers recovered the woman’s pink purse which contained her drivers license, credit cards and cash.

Officers placed Wallace in the back of a patrol vehicle, read him the Miranda warnings, which he said he understood. The officer then asked him what happened and he said, “I don’t know.” The officer reported that Wallace gave the same response to other questions before he said he did not want to talk anymore.

Previous criminal convictions for Wallace include four counts of residential burglary and one count of trafficking in stolen property in March and April of 2019, according to charging papers. Most of the residences were occupied, including one instance where a mother and her baby were home alone when Wallace allegedly attempted to kick down the door. Wallace ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of residential burglary.

Wallace received a 24-month drug offender sentencing alternative. He completed residential and chemical dependency treatment and reported to state Department of Corrections as directed on March 4, 2020. But by May, Wallace had yet to enroll in the intensive outpatient treatment and failed to keep an assessment appointment on May 18 and failed to report to the state Department of Corrections. Bench warrants were issued for Wallace’s arrest and the warrants were outstanding when police arrested him for investigation of attempted robbery.