Tokyo Metropolitan Police arrested an intoxicated 36-year-old man over the alleged theft of a wallet from a woman in Toshima Ward on Tuesday, reports Fuji News Network

At just past midnight, Takuya Yata, of no known occupation, allegedly reached inside the purse of the woman, a university student aged in her 20s, and withdrew the wallet containing about 7,000 yen in cash as she walked along a pedestrian corridor under JR Ikebukuro Station.

According to police, Yata had been drinking alone just before the incident. “I wanted money,” the suspect was quoted by police in admitting to the allegations.

Yata was apprehended after a female officer investigating another theft case heard the student scream. After the suspect fled the scene, the officer chased him down over a distance of about 80 meters.

With the New Year holidays underway, police are upping patrols to combat such thefts.