Moment unsuspecting man falls victim to moped gang phone snatch captured on helmet camera by innocent biker
This is the moment an unsuspecting man fell victim to phone snatchers on a moped as he walked down the street.
This is the moment an unsuspecting man fell victim to phone snatchers on a moped as he walked down the street.
The incident happened on Forest Road, in Walthamstow, east London, just after 3pm on Saturday and was captured by the helmet cam of an innocent motorcycle rider who was driving behind.
The shocking footage shows two men on the same moped steering on to the pavement before swiping the mans phone and speeding off.
The rider is clad all in black with the pillion passenger dressed in a grey tracksuit with his hood up and no helmet.
They suddenly veer over to the left as the thieving duo spot the victim in a red top and shorts.
The phone snatchers can be seen riding up on the pavement behind their unsuspecting victim
The thug on the back of the moped then swipes the mans phone out of his hands as the speed past
The startled victim attempts to chase them but loses hope when he sees how fast they are travelling away from him
The moped - which has L-plates on - then goes onto the pavement and they creep up behind the man.
The crook on the back then swipes the phone from his grasp and the pair speed off as the startled victim momentarily tries to give chase but gives up when he sees how quickly they are riding away.
The man on the other motorbike who was filming the incident carries on driving up the road behind the thieves who then made a quick U-turn in the street - lined with terraced houses and shops - and goes back on itself.
Local resident, Shaun Jackson, said: And he does nothing. For f*cks sake.
Another - named Michael - added: Follow them.
But Dominic Brant said: Get involved, get hurt.
Not worth it over someone elses phone.
A fourth person added: Everyone in London should buy phone tethers.
It prevents this from happening.
Sathursan Sharvaswaran said: I thought this happened in central London.
But didnt expect it far as Walthamstow.
It is the latest in a wave of similar crimes with crooks using electric bikes to snatch phones in central London.
The capital is in the grip of a phone-snatching frenzy that has seen the internet dominated by clips of masked thugs dressed head-to-toe in black swooping on unsuspecting victims all over the city but especially in Mayfair, east of Hyde Park.
In recent months we have reported on thefts in Park Lane, Audley Street, Oxford Street and Bond Street - the latter seeing a victim have his phone stolen as he inadvertently filmed the men who swiped his device.
MailOnlines new map shows the apparent routes young crooks are taking on a regular basis in and around Hyde Park
The techniques used are almost always the same. Thugs dressed all in black, wearing masks or balaclavas, are using illegally modified electric bicycles to creep up on their victims before leaning in and helping themselves to their handsets.
Bikes are typically throttle-powered with no need to pedal, equipped with high-power motors capable of propelling thieves at 30mph as well as chunky off-road tires ideal for mounting pavements and escaping over rough terrain.
Some thugs, like the ones in this story, use mopeds, with a pillion-riding partner acting as phone-snatcher - but around the quiet streets of Mayfair, its the silent snatchers that are prevalent.
The crooks disguises and speed make them nigh-on untraceable to the point police chiefs have called on phone makers to do more to make the devices harder to unlock and sold on the black market.
