Thieves operating from mopeds in London, beware............

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Tony
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Just a word of warning for anyone who walks around London, or I suppose any large cty with their cameras out!
On the radio yesterday there was a story about moped riding thieves who had committed burglary at a major Apple store in London, seems they threatened security with a hammer? But they did make off with a considerable amount of
bounty. At the end of the article they said that there have been 90,000, yeah NINETY THOUSAND cases of thieves operating from mopeds in London since January of this year.
This may not necessarily be new news but it's worth thinking about if you use your camera in such places. I've read and heard from other sources that the thieves are rarely caught and the police wont even chase them iff they discard their crash helmets!
Personally I think they should be chucked in the river Thames with concrete boots on. It's sickening to think that things have got this bad in the UK, we have to blame politicians and the law makers and not the police I suspect.
Be on your guard guys and gals.
cheers
 
Coupled with acid-throwing it is indeed time some serious action was taken against these thugs ... saw a piece on TV a couple of weeks back where they weren't even deterred by being on camera, they came back to confront the journalist & cameraman!
 
The most annoying part is that if you witnessed such a crime and clothes-lined the dirty tw@ts off their little moped, you are the one who'd more likely face charges.

Dublin is the very same, scumbags attacking and mugging people down side streets daily, stealing handbags, phones/mp3 players - even just the headphones if they can't grab anything else, and bikes. The cops don't want to know, they'll throw out random warnings for people to watch their backs basically.

This was just back in Aug, shows how cheeky they are - https://www.buzz.ie/news/thief-tries-steal-unattended-bike-fails-miserably-249189
 
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Just to put in context the veiled criticism of the police... in the report on the Apple store attack in the Telegraph (which was an attack at 12:45am not during the daytime it should be noted) it was reported that...
At the end of last month, Scotland Yard revealed that it was using a special spray to "tag" moped-riding criminals after a surge in offences perpetrated using the vehicles.​

The spray marks the offender with an invisible liquid which is extremely difficult to remove and contains a DNA-style unique code.​

Frontline teams have also been kitted out with automatic "stinger" devices that can remotely puncture tyres to stop criminals getting away.​

In a third tactic, a fleet of new lightweight motorbikes has been rolled out to make police more nimble in their pursuit of suspects, who often use alleyways and narrow streets to escape.​
So tactics are being developed. Essentially in this kind of attack though moped are just used as an alternative to the old fashioned get away car.

That’s not to say this isn’t an issue, but neither are we on the verge of anarchy in the streets of the capital.
 
Eloise said:
Just to put in context the veiled criticism of the police... in the report on the Apple store attack in the Telegraph (which was an attack at 12:45am not during the daytime it should be noted) it was reported that...
At the end of last month, Scotland Yard revealed that it was using a special spray to "tag" moped-riding criminals after a surge in offences perpetrated using the vehicles.​

The spray marks the offender with an invisible liquid which is extremely difficult to remove and contains a DNA-style unique code.​

Frontline teams have also been kitted out with automatic "stinger" devices that can remotely puncture tyres to stop criminals getting away.​

In a third tactic, a fleet of new lightweight motorbikes has been rolled out to make police more nimble in their pursuit of suspects, who often use alleyways and narrow streets to escape.​
So tactics are being developed. Essentially in this kind of attack though moped are just used as an alternative to the old fashioned get away car.

That’s not to say this isn’t an issue, but neither are we on the verge of anarchy in the streets of the capital.
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Just so it's clear, I wasn't criticising the police with or without a veil!

I think you are unaware of the scale of this problem in London, both of crimes committed by thieves using mopeds/motorcycles and the theft of motorcycles/mopeds within the capital, the numbers and quantity of these crimes is a scandal, it should never have been allowed to reach these levels.
Personally I blame the politicians and the lawmakers, I'm aware the police have an extremely difficult job working within the framework of current laws.
cheers
tony
PS my reason for starting the thread was as a warning for those who may not be aware of the problem, police also warn the public, it is a recognised method in the attempt to reduce crime!
 
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Moped crime is getting out of hand in London. Thanks to the government the British citizen is rendered defenceless against knife wielding criminals. There’s a lot of shocking footage on YouTube of these thugs; makes me so angry .
 
Eloise said:
Just to put in context the veiled criticism of the police... in the report on the Apple store attack in the Telegraph (which was an attack at 12:45am not during the daytime it should be noted) it was reported that...
At the end of last month, Scotland Yard revealed that it was using a special spray to "tag" moped-riding criminals after a surge in offences perpetrated using the vehicles.​

The spray marks the offender with an invisible liquid which is extremely difficult to remove and contains a DNA-style unique code.​

Frontline teams have also been kitted out with automatic "stinger" devices that can remotely puncture tyres to stop criminals getting away.​

In a third tactic, a fleet of new lightweight motorbikes has been rolled out to make police more nimble in their pursuit of suspects, who often use alleyways and narrow streets to escape.​
So tactics are being developed. Essentially in this kind of attack though moped are just used as an alternative to the old fashioned get away car.

That’s not to say this isn’t an issue, but neither are we on the verge of anarchy in the streets of the capital.
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Goodness me, a sensible balanced post on TP, whats it coming to, if you can't rant b****x without getting pulled on it. Shame on you
 
I remember being told a couple of stories from South Africa, both were about offenders getting the worst of it and the police turning a blind eye. I have some similar but less extreme stories from the UK (from a probation officer, one time love interest.) Anyway, with so much low level crime almost being decriminalised these days (here's your crime number now go away and don't bother us) maybe the UK law and order agencies should take a more relaxed attitude when people doing bad things get injured by victims or passers by. I've never really been in favor of vigilante action but if the person on the receiving end is known to the police, maybe with a string of convictions, and the conventional forces of law and order have little to no effect maybe I just don't care what happens to them. Sorry if that's an infringement of their human rights.
 
Shouldn't this thread be in the 'Talk b****x about stuff' forum, or whatever it's now called?
 
moped thieves been at it for years espesially in london, they love to target people that walk along with thos nice shiny espensive phones in their hands.
especially woman that sem to actually have to carry them in the hand 24/7
 
Crime has always been bad in London ,it’s just that in the pre digital age you didn’t here about it so much .these days there’s a Facebook group for every few streets so you here about it more quickly .
One of my first jobs was working in the old Covent Garden market ,one of the very large warehouse cellars there was used as a selling area for most of goods that were stolen,burgled,shoplifted in London.everyone knew about it but it was secrect if you get my gist , if you wanted a new watch or t.v or a shirt for a night out you just had to order one. AnD it would appear in a day or two . The largest group of customers were the coppers ,judges and lawyers from bow street magistrates court which was opposite .
There must be something similar these days as there’s no point nicking stuff if there’s no outlet for it
 
Well known method of stealing now, with very young people involved on stolen moped. Even delivery drivers are getting attacked for the mopeds now.
Phones stolen as people walk with them, cashpoints are another known target after money is taken out, thief jumps on the back of the bike and they're away through the traffic. Most seem to be going in packs of two or three bikes now incase of trouble. You need to be very aware
 
Byker28i said:
Well known method of stealing now, with very young people involved on stolen moped. Even delivery drivers are getting attacked for the mopeds now.
Phones stolen as people walk with them, cashpoints are another known target after money is taken out, thief jumps on the back of the bike and they're away through the traffic. Most seem to be going in packs of two or three bikes now incase of trouble. You need to be very aware
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Whats the point of stealing phones? Surely once reported they're just bricked, or even tracked using 'find my phone'?
 
jakeblu said:
Whats the point of stealing phones? Surely once reported they're just bricked, or even tracked using 'find my phone'?
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No idea, but there's a real spate of phones snatched by moped gangs. Sent abroad? Sold on to unsuspecting people not knowing they are blocked?
 
It's not just in London they hit other areas too. Similar moped gangs are nicking motorbikes too. Not just parked bikes but trying their luck at stopping motorcyclists and threatening them with hammers. There have been a couple of videos on Facebook where they have been trying to nick bikes. One or more stands guard threatening people with hammers, whilst another cuts through the bikes security chain with an angle grinder. Two blokes in a van were filming this taking place as they drove past in slow traffic. They didn't take too kindly to being threatened with the hammer got out of the van and beat the thieves up. The most recent one a Brakes Bakery delivery driver happened on a moped gang trying to nick a bike. He just blocked them in with his lorry so they couldn't get the motorbike away. It's quite funny to see the thieves getting agitated and stroppy before they have to ride off without the bike.
During last summer we had gangs of kids riding around on mopeds/scooters wearing balaclava but no helmets causing loads of trouble. In one incident they seriously hurt a pedestrian. In another incident two on a moped crashed, the driver ran off and left his teenage passenger for dead. He wasn't local but came from Beckton East London.
 
jakeblu said:
Whats the point of stealing phones? Surely once reported they're just bricked, or even tracked using 'find my phone'?
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sent abroad, phones only blocked on UK/EU networks at best.
Africa, middle east etc.
 
Mr Bump said:
sent abroad, phones only blocked on UK/EU networks at best.
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Thats curious.
Some months back, my cousin sold a phone to webuyanyphone or some such.
Before sending it, obviously she wiped it clean.
Or so she thought.

A couple of weeks later she got a call on her "Home" number (!) from a guy in Canada of all places asking if the photo's on there
were "precious" before he wiped the phone!
 
When they grab the phones from folk in the street they are often unlocked for use so they eject the sim and make sure wifi is turned off and bam not trackable.
they then take them to a hooky phone dealer who disables the locking mode and powers it off and gives them £20
 
Um, try a couple of hundred quid in the case of newer iPhones and Androids. It's a very lucrative market, which is why the thefts are increasing.
 
Mr Bump said:
When they grab the phones from folk in the street they are often unlocked for use so they eject the sim and make sure wifi is turned off and bam not trackable. they then take them to a hooky phone dealer who disables the locking mode and powers it off and gives them £20
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More likely stripped down for parts. At least in terms of Apple - the locking mechanism is quite effective.

Though still an unlocked phone (i.e. steel it while in use), calls a premium number thats owned by the "criminal gang" and you can rack up quite a bill. Thats the other way of "earning" from an unlocked phone.
 
How easy/feasible is it to strip an iPhone down for spares (battery, screen, sockets, memory etc.)?
 
Nod said:
How easy/feasible is it to strip an iPhone down for spares (battery, screen, sockets, memory etc.)?
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Battery and screen pretty easy. Other parts not too bad, though not sure how usable the motherboard is.

Ironically Apple have been criticised in the past for making parts which can’t be removed from phones which makes things harder to repair, but would make them less use to strip down. Have to balance the two.

Thing is though you don’t need to raise a lot from each phone... a couple of hundred phone a week, each raising £10-50 (as a minimum) is 2-5000 a week, or 100k plus a year!
 
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People are getting more concerned about it where I live in SE London. I live on a main road and there have been 2 attacks there, one 10 metres from my front door in the middle of the day. There's always been a danger of muggings etc but this does feel different, they seem to act with impunity and can get away quickly (hard to chase on foot of course), the impression is the police don't have the resources or means to catch them.When they are caught, they appear to be responsible for lots of crime.

I'm not convinced how much they are after cameras though - I think phones and wallets \ bags which are easy to dispose of are the preferred targets. I did read about someone who was attacked and made to reset his phone to factory default but that is 2nd (well probably 50th) hand.
 
Trouble has been brewing for a while - in our area there has been a spate of moped and scooter thefts - primarily for the purposes on robbing people on streets.... Police have more or less advised moped owners not to get too attached to their wheels (same with bikes - the bike rack at Richmond station which is behind our local 'station' has bikes taken away on a regular basis)....

A local favourite is that the moped thieves will slowly drive past parked cars and if anything is on show, window smashed and item grabbed. Even in our local Sainsbury's gangs have been observed.

The police don't have the resources to deal with it - being a NHW co-ordinate I spole with our local Safer Neighbourhood team about other nuisance issues - texting while driving and cycling on pavements and they've admitted they are more or less powerless to do much.
 
welshwizard645 said:
Trouble has been brewing for a while - in our area there has been a spate of moped and scooter thefts - primarily for the purposes on robbing people on streets.... Police have more or less advised moped owners not to get too attached to their wheels (same with bikes - the bike rack at Richmond station which is behind our local 'station' has bikes taken away on a regular basis)....

A local favourite is that the moped thieves will slowly drive past parked cars and if anything is on show, window smashed and item grabbed. Even in our local Sainsbury's gangs have been observed.

The police don't have the resources to deal with it - being a NHW co-ordinate I spole with our local Safer Neighbourhood team about other nuisance issues - texting while driving and cycling on pavements and they've admitted they are more or less powerless to do much.
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It's not so much the police don't have the resources to deal with it, but the second these gangs are aware of any police presence they remove their crash helmets and ride off in balaclavas as the police aren't then allowed to chase them just in case they are injured. There is a case which was in the news a few weeks ago where a young man on a scooter was killed. He was a known felon, he was on a stolen scooter and the police were only following him at a distance. The bloke, who was wearing a helmet, crashed and died. His family want the police prosecuted
 
Eloise said:
Wrong lock ... the activation lock. The “my phone has been stolen... wipe and lock this phone”. You can’t do anything without the Apple iCloud ID. Now yes you may be able to scam that out of the user, but without it the phone is useless.
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Nope gain access is easy, rip out the sim it wont wipe and lock, factory reset, send it abroad. Thats where they all go. There's not many stripped for parts
 
Byker28i said:
Nope gain access is easy, rip out the sim it wont wipe and lock, factory reset, send it abroad. Thats where they all go. There's not many stripped for parts
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No; as soon as they connect to the internet they wipe and lock. The problem isn't the technology - the problem is many people bypass the technology because it interferes with them using the phone as they want to. A lot of people don't even have a passcode!!
Byker28i said:
https://www.computerworld.com/artic...ck-screen-on-iphones-ipads-running-ios-9.html
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They claim that still works on iOS 11 ... it doesn't on iOS 11.1.1

For crime generally though it doesn't matter if some phones are lockable, so long a large number are still usable. As commented this kind of crime is increasing (along with the casual picking phones off the table and regular pick pocketing). If a thief can get 10 phones a day; they might get £100 for them. The guy up the line however is then getting 100 phones a day; for which he only needs fo get £20 for to make £1,000 a day 'profit', £5,000 a week, £250,000 a year!
 
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Eloise said:
No; as soon as they connect to the internet they wipe and lock.
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I'm not going to discuss how or why here, but wipe and lock is easily bypassed and as soon as a phone is stolen they are turned off and the sim discarded. IME codes allow phones to be disabled on networks but these don't apply abroad in many countries with other providers.
 
Can you flash or jailbreak newer apple phones?
there must be a market for them
 
Byker28i said:
I'm not going to discuss how or why here, but wipe and lock is easily bypassed and as soon as a phone is stolen they are turned off and the sim discarded. IME codes allow phones to be disabled on networks but these don't apply abroad in many countries with other providers.
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yep thas what I said
 
Great video this morning on Mail Online. Bunch of thieves on scooters slowing for a crossing being chased down by a bloke on foot, who pushes one of the scrotes over and off his bike.
 
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