THIS is the shocking moment a group of “good Samaritans” help a woman retrieve her phone from a railway track before stealing it and running off.
Footage shows the two youths jumping down from the platform at Ilford station in – what appears to be an act of good faith – before promptly doing away with the device.
A shocking video appears to show a gang of youths retrieving a woman’s phone from train tracks – and then stealing it[/caption]
The thief then throws the device over the fence to an accomplice[/caption]
Cops were called to reports the incident at around 6:40pm on September 22.
Horrifying video captures the woman looking distressed after her phone fell onto the tracks.
As she scans the station for assistance, the two young men drop down from the platform to retrieve the device.
Fellow passengers are heard shouting in the background: “does he not realise it’s electrified?”
As another yelled: “What the f*** is he doing?”
The woman then approaches the pair to get her phone but instead of handing it over, they walk off.
Station staff later confront the phoney good Samaritans in a bid to stop them leaving the station.
But moments later, one of the thugs brazenly throws the device over the fence to a waiting accomplice who promptly zooms off with the phone.
Staff attempted to chase down the thieves but it remains unclear if the phone was recovered.
Officers said a group of youths had bumped into her, causing her to drop her phone which then fell onto the tracks.
They have since appealed for anyone with information to come forward.
Witnesses should text BTP on 61016 using reference 22 September.
PHONE THEFT EPIDEMIC
The Metropolitan Police has warned that gangs are pocketing millions, with phone thefts “on an industrial scale”.
Almost 80,000 handsets were stolen last year – that’s up by about 16,000 on 2023.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, tourist hotspots tend to rank highest, which is especially worrying for anyone planning on venturing into the capital over the summer.
However, hundreds of incidents were reported in typically residential areas up and down Greater London, too.
The West End comes out as the worst place for phone thefts, with a staggering 13,578 cases logged – the equivalent to 37 handsets every day on average.
St James’s – which covers areas around Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament and all the way along the famous Stand – ranked second with some 6,693 recorded incidents.
TAKE ON THE PHONE THEFT GANGS
There are many obvious ways to avoid falling victim to phone snatching gangs, such as being aware of your surroundings and putting your phone away when you’ve finished using it.
But there are settings on your mobile you need to switch on.
Primarily, you should have location tracking activated to help police pinpoint where your mobile is.
On iPhone, it’s known as Find My and on Android it’s Find My Device.
You can find these within the settings.
There’s also another important trick to try available on Android.
It may not result in you getting your phone back, but can prevent thieves causing more devastation by raiding through your banking apps to steal money.
Theft Detection Lock cleverly uses motion sensors to pick up on the sort of movements associated with a phone being snatched and whisked away.
When it’s detected, your phone automatically locks so criminals can’t dig around your device.
While iPhone doesn’t have the same feature, there is Stolen Device Protection.
This kicks in when you’re away from familiar locations like your home and work.
