Bond Set at $500K for Suspected Purse Snatcher

A judge ordered bond set at $500,000 on Saturday for a man who allegedly choked a woman and stole her purse in the Gold Coast neighborhood on Black Friday.

Richard D. Mendoza, 31, was charged with one count of felony robbery, police said. Mendoza was taken into custody after two men chased him down.

Early Friday, Mendoza came up behind a 44-year-old woman shopping on the Magnificent Mile, choked her and knocked her to the ground.  The two started fighting over her purse until the man kicked the woman and got away, police said.

Two men intervened and chased Mendoza, who threw the purse into an alley and tried to get away in a cab. The men stalled the cab and police arrested Mendoza.

The woman was taken to Northwestern Memorial in stable condition, police said. She suffered bruising to her face and swelling on her head.

Mendoza appeared at a bond hearing Saturday at 26th Street and California Avenue, where bond was set at $500,000.

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