Waist attachment for handbag including shoulder bag

A safety attachment for securement to a person's body and for releasably anchoring a handbag, purse or shoulder bag to that person in a manner to foil a purse snatching attempt, said attachment comprising a housing defining a receptacle opening in a downward direction and closed at its upper end to the exclusion of a small diameter opening, an elongated flexible anchor member slidably received through said opening with a first end portion of said anchor member disposed within said receptacle and a second end portion disposed outwardly of said receptacle, each end portion of said anchor member including means defining an enlargement thereon incapable of being passed through said opening, said receptacle including anchor means for anchoring the receptacle to a person's body, one side wall of said receptacle including a first anchor element, the second end portion of said anchor member including a second anchor element releasably anchorable to said first anchor element, the first end portion of said anchor member including releasable clip means for releasably engaging a predetermined anchor point on an associated purse, handbag or shoulder bag, said first anchor element being supported from a lower portion of said receptacle, and the length of said anchor member being such that when said anchor elements are engaged with each other said clip means will be retracted upwardly into the interior of said receptacle and when said second anchor element is released from engagement with said first anchor element and the enlargement on said second end portion is engaged with the portions of said receptacle defining said small diameter opening said clip means may be downwardly withdrawn from the open lower end of said receptacle, said anchor means including a belt engageable clip for removable support of said attachment from the belt of the user.