Police yesterday charged a 23-year-old woman in connection with a spate of purse snatchings during Sunday or funeral services at Honolulu churches, and said more charges could follow.

Kellyn Cabral was being held on $50,000 bail at the police cellblock last night. She was charged with one count of second-degree burglary and one count of second-degree robbery, Detective Steve Forman said.

Meanwhile, police yesterday were taking a new look at three similar church thefts, in addition to eight cases previously reported from February to March in urban and east Honolulu.

Police said all the cases appear to be related.

Forman said he got several calls yesterday, following an Advertiser story on the thefts, from women who said their purses were stolen while at church.

Two of the new cases were in Kane'ohe and one was in east Honolulu, he said.

Lila Marantz, whose purse was stolen from St. Ann's Church in Kane'ohe on March 25, said she called Forman because her case sounded so similar to the others.

Marantz said she left her purse for just a moment with her 7-year-old daughter and another child in a Sunday school classroom. While she was gone, her daughter told her, a woman came into the classroom asking for "Christine" and made off with Marantz's purse.

Forman said more charges are likely against Cabral.

The charges filed yesterday stem from an incident on a Sunday in March at St. Pius X Church in Manoa, in which a woman took mail from the church office, then went into a funeral service and stole a purse after telling an employee that the purse's owner was her "auntie."

The owner of the stolen purse was receiving communion and left her bag at the pew. Parishioners stopped the woman minutes later. She allegedly hit and kicked them, which is why she was charged with robbery.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.