Overview

• Michelle Tsiakkas said she was left traumatised and lost strength in her legs when her phone was snatched in broad daylight near Covent Garden around 9am on her way to the dentist.
• Kate Garraway disclosed past incidents of phones stolen from her bag in London and criticised the lack of police follow-up when reporting thefts.
• Criminals on e-bikes target unsuspecting pedestrians for swift grabs, immediately powering down stolen devices to disable tracking services like Find My Phone.
• Scotland Yard figures show 81,256 mobile phone robberies in London during 2023—a 20% rise from the previous year, equating to an average of 37 snatches daily.
• Exclusive Independent data reveals UK mobile thefts almost doubled to 83,900 over five years, with London remaining the epicentre of the surge.