Woman, security guard assaulted at East Memphis Kroger

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A 64-year-old woman is recovering after she was assaulted in the parking lot of Kroger at Poplar and Kirby on Thursday night.

She while walking to her car with uniformed store security when a thief tried to steal her purse.

During the process, the suspect reportedly kicked her in head and body repeatedly along with hitting the security guard with a shopping cart.

Ultimately, the thief left empty-handed after security intervened along with other shoppers. In a statement released to WREG, Kroger said the following:

“At Kroger, safety is our top priority for customers and associates. The purpose of our 3^rd party, uniformed security officers is to serve as a deterrent to criminal activity and help make the store a safe environment for customers and associates. While patrolling the store, our security officer escorted the customer to her vehicle and bravely intervened when the suspect began attacking the customer. We are working with the Memphis Police Department in this ongoing investigation.”

                                                                                               -Sheleah Harris, Kroger Spokesperson

Despite those efforts, those who work in the area say those efforts haven’t been effective.

“This is not the first time this has happened. There’s been several elderly people that have been attacked or robbed, there’s been people shot right there,” a shopper told us.

Crime data from the city shows at least 47 reported crimes over the last six months in the shopping center amid growing calls for changes.

Police are still searching for a suspect. If you know anything give them a call. As far as the victim, she’s expected to make a full recovery.