A suspected phone thief has attempted to escape police by riding into a park and wading into a pond in South East London.
Bodycam footage from the Metropolitan Police shows the suspect appearing to throw away six suspected stolen mobile phones wrapped in foil into the pond.
A police chase through the streets of the capital was sparked after officers on police Surron and BMW GS motorbikes and in unmarked vehicles tracked down the suspected thief riding a high-powered e-bike.
Following the high-speed chase, police footage shows the moment officers detain the suspect after a coordinated pursuit, recovering the six suspected stolen phones.
The incident took place in September after police officers identified suspicious behaviour and attempted to stop the e-bike rider.
During the arrest, the suspect attempted to dispose of the phones by throwing them into the pond, but officers were able to locate and recover them.
The six suspected stolen mobile phones were found wrapped in foil after being recovered from the pond.
The suspect was arrested and is on police bail pending further enquiries.
A suspected phone snatcher was chased into a pond in London as he attempted to ditch the mobiles
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METROPOLITAN POLICE
The case forms part of a wider Metropolitan Police crackdown in the capital on mobile phone theft, phone snatching and the organised criminal networks profiting from stolen devices.
Officers have been targeting street thieves, handlers and exporters while recovering stolen iPhones, Samsung phones, Google Pixel phones and Android devices.
Specialist and local police officers are using intelligence-led operations, drones, high-powered e-bikes and Live Facial Recognition to identify suspects and respond to phone theft across the UK.
Scotland Yard is also working with Apple to share data and intelligence about stolen mobile phones, helping investigators track where devices are moved and disrupt the networks behind the trade.
The man was chased through the park by police before entering the pond
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METROPOLITAN POLICE
Commander Andy Featherstone, lead for tackling phone theft at the Met Police, said in a statement: “Phone theft offences are now at a four-year low because of the Met’s relentless campaign to crack down on these criminals.
“This was our biggest operation yet, with officers targeting every stage of the organised criminal chain, including street thieves, handlers and exporters.
“Our message to these criminals is clear: London is becoming a much harder place to steal phones. The risks are increasing, the opportunities are shrinking, and we are coming after you.”
Lord Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London, declared that the “tide is definitely turning” on mobile phone crime in London, with “16,000 fewer mobile phones stolen in the past year and neighbourhood crime falling further too”.
He said in a statement: “Record funding from City Hall is empowering the Met to go after every single part of the £50million-a-year trade in stolen phones.
“New Met Police drones and Sur-Ron bikes are allowing the police to take the fight directly to the street robbers, while street vendor ‘middlemen’ who unlock stolen devices or break them up for parts are being shut down, and organised gang leaders responsible for smuggling stolen phones out of the country are being brought to book.
“The ongoing clampdown has seen hundreds of criminals arrested with thousands of handsets seized.
“We are all determined to build on this progress and will continue to support the police and work with the mobile phone industry to go much further in preventing stolen phones being used, sold and repurposed, to build a safer London for all.”