Accused Purse Snatchers Indicted On Robbery Charge

CANTON, GA — A Cherokee County grand jury has indicted three defendants on a robbery charge in connection to a purse snatching reported late last year in Canton.

The grand jury last week indicted Gregory Tyler Cummings, Ravin Elizabeth Riedinger and Curtiss Blake Cavender on one count each of robbery by sudden snatching for grabbing the purse of a shopper on Oct. 29, 2017, at Publix on Riverstone Parkway.

According to warrants obtained through court records, the victim's purse contained $75 in cash, three credit cards, a Samsung G4 cell phone and a Georgia driver's license.

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Canton police arrested the three suspects in November 2017 after they began investigating reports of purse snatchings at local stores around the city. Officers were able to identify the trio after obtaining witness descriptions of them as well as their vehicle following the October incident.

The investigation also revealed the trio were "also committing various other crimes in surrounding jurisdictions," the police department previously said.

On Nov. 1, officers responded to a call of another purse snatching at Walmart at 1550 Riverstone Parkway. Those cops arrived and met with loss prevention staff members, who directed them to a suspect trying to flee the scene. That man, identified as Curtiss Cavender, was found in a nearby parking lot of a restaurant and officers took him into custody.

After interviewing Cavender, 21, officers learned the identities of his alleged accomplices, Riedinger and Cummings. Arrest warrants were issued for the suspects, and they were all arrested Nov. 13 following a domestic dispute unrelated to the purse snatchings.

Court records show arraignment for Cummins, Riedinger and Cavender will be held at 9 a.m. June 14 in Courtroom 2C at the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center.

Photo: from left to right are Gregory Cummings, Ravin Riedinger and Curtiss Cavender. Credit: Cherokee Sheriff's Office