Green Hills Handbag Heist Sparks 110-Mile Pursuit

NASHVILLE, TN -- Three Californians rented a minivan, stole $60,000 worth of purses from the Nordstrom at the Mall at Green Hills and then took police on a 111-mile, multi-county winding pursuit before crashing in Fairview Thursday, investigators said.

Metro Police said Bianca Woodson, 27, and Damon Page, 21, both of San Francisco, along with 23-year-old Rodney Albritton of Vallego, Calif. stole the purses and then took off in the rental, speeding onto Interstate 40 West.

After an alert to Midstate law enforcement agencies, the trio was spotted exiting I-40 in Humphreys County, where Woodson was dropped off at the Quality Inn. Page and Albritton then allegedly headed back east on I-40.

The Dickson County Sheriff's Office tried spiking the van at the Bon Aqua exit, but apparently the spikes did not puncture the tires and the pair continued south on Highway 46 before turning east on Highway 100.

The Williamson County Sheriff's Office was able to deploy spike strips of their own near the intersection of Highway 100 and Interstate 840. Those spike strips worked and the van lost control, left the road and caught fire, ending the 110-mile chase a little more than 30 miles from where it began.

See a map of the route:

Albritton and Page were arrested following the crash. Meanwhile, a Tennessee Highway Patrol helicopter spotted Woodson in Hurricane Mills. She was arrested not at the Quality Inn, but hiding under the stairs at a neighboring Days Inn. She was reportedly wearing a jacket that had been stolen in the Nordstrom heist. It still had the price tag on it, according to police.

Photos via Metro Nashville Police