The thief that stole DHS Secretary Kristi Noem's purse was wearing a COVID-era face mask and reportedly used his foot to drag her purse from under her chair, according to a DHS spokeswoman.
"She could feel this person as they snatched her bag, but thought they were her grandchildren playing until realizing a minute later that her bag was gone," Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman Tricia McLaughlin told The New York Times. "Her bag was under her feet and the perpetrator hooked the bag with his foot and dragged it across the floor and put a coat over it and took it."
The thief made off with the purse containing $3,000 in cash, Noem's driver's license, medication, apartment keys, and blank checks, according to the report.
Noem had the large sum of cash in her purse to pay for gifts, dinner, and other activities for her family on Easter Sunday.
The Homeland Security Secretary is protected by U.S. Secret Service agents. The Secret Service referred questions about the incident to Homeland Security headquarters.
Information from The Associated Press was used to compile this report.