The daughter of a Virginia Church of Christ pastor helped police connect a series of purse thefts and credit card fraud that took place across the Iron Range throughout December.
Samantha Jean Jordan, 23, of Ely has been charged with three felony counts related to the purse thefts. According to the criminal complaint, Jordan admitted to stealing seven unattended purses and twice using stolen credit cards to supply her heroin and prescription drug addiction.
Virginia police arrested Jordan on Dec. 31 in Ely. She was arraigned Jan. 2 in St. Louis County Court in Virginia and is scheduled to appear again on Jan. 21. She remains on supervised release.
Virginia police Detective Dennis Benz said Jordan is from Ohio and moved to Ely about a month ago to be closer to her fiance's relatives.
Jordan also admitted to swindling two churches of $200 in cash, and that's where the Clark family of Virginia helped break the case, Benz said.
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Jordan had repeatedly called Pastor Edward Clark at the Virginia Church of Christ in the days before Christmas.
"She was crying and said she needed money to get home to Ohio," said Diane Clark, Edward's wife. The Clarks finally decided to offer their help and bought a $150 gas card for Jordan.
At the time, Clark said, it seemed like the right thing to do. They have helped others in need buy food and other necessities, and Jordan truly seemed to need help.
"If that had been my daughter, I would want to get her back home during the holidays," Clark said.
When the Clarks arrived home on Christmas night, they found Jordan and her fiance waiting on the street outside. Edward Clark invited the couple in. When the Clarks offered the gas card, Jordan declined, saying the card wouldn't work beyond Wisconsin. Edward Clark went out again to retrieve $150 in cash to give to the couple, the first time he's ever given cash to someone in need, Diane said.
"Then we gave them some treats, and sent them on their way," Diane Clark said. But the incident seemed suspicious to the Clarks' daughter, Cynthia. She called Virginia police to report the behavior, and gave Jordan's name.
Meanwhile, Virginia police had been gathering information on several reports of stolen purses from around the area. Witness descriptions and surveillance videos linked Jordan to the thefts.
According to police, Jordan stole purses from the United Methodist Church in Virginia, Herberger's in Virginia, Target, twice from Super One Foods South, and the Super One Foods in Hibbing.
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The case highlights the need to always keep an eye on your personal belongings, Benz said. Jordan plucked purses that had been left for just seconds.
"We were fortunate enough to figure out who it was," Benz said. "A lot of times, that's not the case. With this case, with everyone working together, it worked out very nicely."
But Diane Clark, who is still feeling stung by the whole incident, sees it a little differently.
"It was just a fiasco," she said.
