A 27-year-old woman was the victim of a purse theft Friday night at The Coopers Tavern on West Mifflin Street.

The victim and her boyfriend were at the bar in The Coopers Tavern when the woman noticed her purse was missing from the back of her chair, a Madison Police Department report said. Her boyfriend went outside and confronted the person he believed had snatched the purse, and after a tussle, he was able to get back the purse, the report said.

When the victim’s boyfriend saw the suspect, she seemed to be hiding something under her coat and he eventually won the purse back, MPD spokesperson Joel DeSpain said. The suspect then hopped into a car and fled the scene, the report said.

The suspect was eventually apprehended later that night when police responded to an unrelated call on the north side of town, according to the report.

“Without the description from the victim and her boyfriend, we might not have caught the suspect as quickly as we did,” DeSpain said. “At first the suspect denied any knowledge of the crime, but when she was confronted with the details, she admitted to it.”

Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, said this type of crime is unfortunately fairly common, although downtown Madison is “relatively very safe.”

Verveer said people often leave things at the bar or on a table and go to the dance floor, thinking their things will be OK.

“This kind of crime is random in that these criminals are just looking for an easy mark, if you will, so it is important to have ‘situational awareness,’ in police terms,” DeSpain said. “Be aware of who is around you and what’s happening.”