New footage has emerged of police putting a stop an e-bike riding phone robbery gang and recovering thousands of pounds worth of tech in the process.
In the dramatic video shared on the London Metropolitan Police’s social media feed, the gang can be seen robbing the phones of multiple unsuspecting pedestrians on the capital’s streets.
However, it ends with their just rewards, as officers can be seen entering a London pub and confronting one of the gang members before placing him under arrest.
The gang, consisting of two teenagers and a 21-year-old man, had been involved in a spate of phone robberies in the Greenwich and Bermondsey areas of London last summer.
Responding to community concerns, officers within the Met Police set up an investigation into the gang’s activities which ultimately led to the thieves’ identification and arrest.
Upon the arrests of the trio, hoards of stolen phones were found by officers, with 30 already having been returned to their rightful owners.
Phone robberies by thieves on e-bikes have become common place on the streets of London in recent times, with certain hotspots identified in a recent investigation.
The Mayfair and Marylebone areas of central London were highlighted as particular hotspots, with robberies frequently reported along Oxford Street and Bond Street.
Tourists have also been targeted by the group, specifically in the environs of Hyde Park which makes for a perfect getaway location for the crooks.
Met Police data supports this worrying trend, with the number of reported phone thefts on London streets skyrocketing by almost 100 per cent between 2013 and 2018 to over 94,000 per year.
Other hotspot areas highlighted by the Met Police hierarchy include Westminster, Lambeth and Newham.
Moreover, for those concerned about this worrying uptick in phone theft, authorities have shared three key things you can do to help.
These include being aware of your surroundings at all times, utilising your phone’s security features and also learning your device’s IMEI number to help identify it in the event it is stolen.