Hampden police recovered a stolen car Tuesday afternoon.

Officer Ben Eyles reported that at about 10 a.m. Officer Shawn Devine received a call from a Kennebec Road man who said his car had been stolen sometime between 10:30 p.m. Monday and 8 a.m. Tuesday.

The car had been locked, with the keys in the center console, the man said.

Eyles said that at about 5:20 p.m. he received a phone call saying that an abandoned car was parked in front of a house on Main Road South. Eyles found that it was the missing car, with its plates replaced by others.

Eyles said the car will be returned to its owner this morning. The case is still under investigation.

Somebody ripped the pay phone off a building at Bass Park in Bangor in the last few days, police say.

Officer Dennis Lally reported that a worker at Bass Park told police that the phone was taken from a building in the stable area sometime between Friday and Tuesday. The whole phone was taken. Its value was estimated at $500.

A shopper in Brewer had her purse stolen Tuesday afternoon.

Officer Roger Hershey said that at about 5:30 p.m. a woman shopping at the Hannaford Supermarket on Wilson Street told police that her purse had been stolen from her shopping cart. The woman said she looked away, and when she looked back, it was gone. About $100 in cash and the woman’s Social Security card were reportedly in the purse.

Brewer police Lt. Perry Antone said this incident is part of a trend.

Hershey said shoppers should either hold on to their purses or tie them to the cart.

Old Town police arrested a man Monday night on a charge of operating after suspension.

Officer Bobby Pelletier reported that at about 9 p.m. he pulled a car over on Stillwater Avenue because it had a headlight out. The driver, Jonathan Tse, 20, of Old Town, had a Connecticut driver’s license, but his right to drive in Maine was suspended for failing to pay a fine.

Tse was arrested and taken to Penobscot County Jail. He was also charged with failure to produce evidence of insurance.

– Compiled by NEWS reporter Isaac Kimball