The Charles County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the identity of a man and a woman involved in a series of credit card thefts and Charles County Crime Solvers is offering a reward for information that leads to an arrest.

The thefts have occurred since May 31 at local grocery stores — the Shopper’s Food Warehouse and Giant, both of which are located in Waldorf. During the thefts, one suspect creates a diversion — such as by engaging the victim in a conversation — while the other suspect steals the victim’s wallet, which in all cases has been left unattended in the victim’s shopping cart. The suspects use the victims’ credit cards to purchase gift cards at other stores including Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Lowe’s Home Improvement. They are possibly traveling in a dark Pontiac or Chevrolet van and may be responsible for nearly a half-dozen thefts. Many of the victims have been elderly.

The Sheriff’s Office has posted photographs of the two suspects and the van on its website, www.ccso.us. Anyone with information about the thefts is asked to contact Det. C. Gass at (301) 609-6522 or Charles County Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS. For information about submitting a tip via e-mail or text messaging, visit www.ccso.us. All tipsters remain anonymous.

Thieves can steal a wallet from a purse left in a shopping cart in as little time as it takes to turn your back to select an item from the shelves. To help prevent such thefts, the Sheriff’s Office reminds citizens to safely guard their purses and wallets at all times. For more safety tips, visit the Sheriff’s Office’s website, www.ccso.us.