The King County Sheriff’s Office is reporting a rash of parking lot purse snatches outside major retailers. Police report more than 60 such crimes this year in King County since January including seven in Seattle.

The crimes apparently involve teens and young men, sometimes in stolen cars, who drive through parking lots looking for women with purses. They take the purse and then go on spending sprees with the cash or credit cards they find, according to a police spokesman.

Police reported a rash of incidents in Tacoma, Federal Way, Covington, Tukwila and Seattle.

They not only advised shoppers to become more aware of their surroundings. Some victims reported they have stopped carrying purses when they go shopping.