O.C. Teachers’ Credit Cards, Cash Stolen From Schools

Someone is stealing wallets, credit cards and cash from Orange County teachers, authorities said Wednesday.

At least one thief has infiltrated elementary schools in Rossmoor, Seal Beach, Los Alamitos, Fullerton, Anaheim and Cypress, and may also have entered classrooms in Los Angeles County, said Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jim Amormino.

The thief “goes into grammar schools during breakfast servings, during assemblies, during lunchtime and is somehow able to remove wallets” from empty classrooms, Amormino said.

Investigators on Wednesday released photos of a woman they believe is involved in the thefts. Store security cameras captured a woman using cards and cash from school thefts to purchase clothing and electronics, Amormino said.

Between March and June, he said, the woman racked up “thousands and thousands of dollars” of purchases at Target, Ralph’s, Food 4 Less and various gas stations. She is wanted on suspicion of felony theft, burglary, fraud and forgery.

“During the transaction, she stays on the cellphone as a distraction so the clerk cannot ask her any questions,” Amormino said.

Because of the thief’s ease in gaining access to classrooms, authorities believe the culprit may be a substitute teacher or school vendor, Amormino said.

No teachers or school officials, however, have recognized the woman in the videos.

Livia Rusalin, who teaches third grade at Hopkinson Elementary in Los Alamitos, is one of the victims. Her wallet was stolen June 1 while she was at lunch. Someone then charged about $1,200 to Rusalin’s accounts in a spree from Seal Beach to Fullerton.

“It makes me feel so violated,” Rusalin said. “I wish retailers would ask for ID.”

Authorities ask that anyone with information regarding the classroom thefts call the Sheriff’s Department at (714) 647-7000.