Legendary 85-Year-Old Thief Caught Again Trying to Steal Jewels

The guard, whose identity has not been released, saw Payne taking the earrings from the shelf of a Christian Dion boutique. At age 83, she allegedly tried to steal a $40,000 ring in California.

Police said they arrested the 5-foot-1, 110-pound Payne after store security personnel spotted her on video. She was booked into the Fulton County jail after being charged with theft by shoplifting.

After her arrest, police found that Payne had an active warrant for shoplifting in North Carolina as well.

“It’s extraordinarily rare for a criminal to have that lengthy of a career”, he said.

According to WGCL-TV, she has admitted to stealing jewels from Paris, Monaco and Tokyo.

An 85-year-old woman long ago pegged as an global jewel thief was arrested in Atlanta last week after authorities say she stole a pair of high-dollar earrings from an upscale store in an Atlanta mall. As far back as the 1970s, officers had been anxious about her activities. In her 50-year-career, Payne is believed to have stolen around $2 million worth of jewelry. Several arrests later, in 2013, she said again that she was leaving that life behind. She spent nearly five years in prison.

Berry initially signed on to play the global thief in Who is Doris Payne? in 2009, but the project suffered numerous delays and has yet to come to fruition. She is very good.

In 2013, Payne was charged with stealing a $22,500 diamond-encrusted ring from a California jewelry store.

According to CBS affiliate WGCL-TV, police have called Payne a “career criminal”.

She developed a winning strategy – dressing nicely, carrying a designer handbag and arming herself with a detailed story – that she used to charm jewelry store employees. In the process of choosing a piece to buy, Payne pockets one, employees tend to easily lose count of the number of jewelry items they bring out.