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Purse thief who targeted Noem sentenced

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by Sophie Brams - 04/22/26 3:54 PM ET

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by Sophie Brams - 04/22/26 3:54 PM ET

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A man who pleaded guilty to stealing former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s purse at a downtown Washington, D.C., restaurant in a string of thefts last spring has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Mario Bustamante Leiva, 50, received a 36-month sentence in federal court on Wednesday, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia.

He pleaded guilty in November to three counts of wire fraud and one count of first-degree theft. Pirro’s office said he is living in the country illegally and will be subject to deportation once his sentence is completed.

“Bustamante Leiva came to Washington illegally to prey on citizens of the District. He methodically targeted women at restaurants, stealing their purses, and monetizing the stolen cards within minutes,” Pirro said in a statement. “His pattern of theft ends here. He will serve his prison term and be deported.”

Federal court filings stated that across three separate days last April, Bustamente Leiva would “target diners at restaurants in the District of Columbia and elsewhere, stealthily steal their purses, and make fraudulent purchases using the diner’s stolen credit cards.”

One of those incidents involved Noem, who was dining with her family at Capital Burger on 7th Street NW to celebrate Easter.

Prosecutors said Bustamante Leiva entered the restaurant and “deliberately seated himself within arm’s reach of his next victim,” whom he did not know at the time was the then-secretary. Surveillance video then captured him repeatedly looking down toward Noem’s purse before “bending down and snatching it.”

The bag contained $3,000 in cash, her Department of Homeland Security access badge, her passport, her driver’s license and several credit cards, among other items.

“After the theft, Bustamante Leiva traveled to a restaurant in the 2900 block of M Street NW, where surveillance cameras recorded him in possession of Noem’s purse, wallet, and at least one of her credit cards, which he used to make an unauthorized purchase,” Pirro’s office stated.

Bustamante Leiva remained at the restaurant until roughly midnight, when he exited and fell asleep at an outdoor table, according to charging documents.

He was arrested at a motel a few days later after authorities reportedly tracked his location through gift card purchases made on another victim’s stolen credit card. Noem’s purse and wallet, several thousand dollars in cash and other items were found during a search of his room.

Prosecutors said that Bustamente Leiva entered the U.S. in August 2021 on a visa authorizing him to stay in the country until November.

“He did not leave and continued to reside in the country illegally,” Pirro’s office stated, adding that he also has active criminal warrants in Utah and New York.

His co-defendant, Cristian Montecino-Sanzana, was sentenced in March to 13 months in prison and three years of supervised release for his role in one of the thefts, according to the office.

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