London police crackdown on phone snatching sees 230 arrests in one week

A Metropolitan Police crackdown on phone snatching in London has seen 230 people arrested and more than 1,000 phones recovered in the space of just one week.

The police service also reported that a gang found guilty of handling more than 5,000 stolen phones have been sentenced to a total of 18 years in prison …

London police crackdown on phone snatching

BBC News reports that the police used a mix of phone tracking and deployment of plain-clothes officers in known crime-spots to catch the thieves.

A clampdown on the “industrial-scale” crime of mobile phone-snatching across London has resulted in 230 people being arrested by the Metropolitan Police in the past week. In its battle against the “scourge of mobile phone crime”, the force said it had also seized more than 1,000 handsets.

It said its work had been “ramped up” to deal with the £50m-a-year trade in stolen phones across the capital, with those responsible for thefts, handling, and onward criminal supply all being targeted.

The most common tactic employed by smartphone thieves is to ride stolen scooters and ebikes looking for people using their phones on the street. They then ride onto sidewalks, coming up behind victims in order to snatch the devices.

Early on, safety concerns had led police to discontinue pursuits of scooter riders when the risks to the riders were deemed too high. However, after complaints from the public about this, the policy was changed, allowing officers to continue pursuit and use “tactical contact” to knock them off the vehicles.

You can enjoy a few examples of this here:

Apple’s introduction of Activation Lock way back in 2013 led to dramatic reductions in iPhone thefts in some cities, though the impact was variable as they could still be stolen for parts.

The later launch of parts pairing offered further deterrent, though the practice proved extremely controversial due to issues with DIY repairs. Apple later provided a solution to this through a process of “blessing” replacement parts.

Image: Metropolitan Police