Laney Ettel of Virginia Beach was having dinner Friday night at Gurney's Star Island Resort in Montauk when, she told police, her purse went missing. A Gurney's employee was suspected, and police subsequently stopped a car near Kirk Park matching a description provided to them, but did not find either the thief or the pocketbook.
Later that night, at 3:30 a.m., "a friend of the thief" went to police to let them know the perpetrator had panicked and abandoned the purse near the Malibu Motel on South Emery Street. It was recovered, and Ms. Ettel said nothing had been taken from it.
The suspect, facing felony and misdemeanor charges, turned himself in later that morning and apologized to Ms. Ettel, who declined to press charges.