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Six People Filmed Carrying Out Dramatic Robbery In London With Sledgehammer

Six People Filmed Carrying Out Dramatic Robbery In London With Sledgehammer

Police haven't made any arrests yet.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

Police are on the hunt for a group seen carrying out a robbery at an exclusive jewellery store in London. The brazen heist occurred at a shop in Chelsea in the middle of the day, according to police, with the six individuals seen escaping on three motorbikes.

Metropolitan Police have issued a statement which reads: "A number of suspects had arrived on motorscooters, entered the store and then used hammers to smash their way through counter displays.

"The robbers removed property from the displays and then made off on the bikes. No one was reported injured. No arrests at this time."

Credit: Newsflare

While the identities of the people involved are unclear, the threat of moped thieves is a growing reality for people in London.

There have been 16,158 thefts by people using motorised scooters in the 12 months from June 2016. That's a threefold increase from the figures recorded by Metropolitan Police between 2015-16.

The Met Police has launched Operation Venice, a special taskforce designed to focus on this type of crime alone. The criminals are typically teenage boys, according to the Evening Standard, who steal the mopeds in outer London boroughs before committing further crimes in the city.

Shockingly, about 1,500 scooters are being stolen every month, with the thieves usually focusing on snatching mobile phones. Commander Julian Bennett, who attached to Operation Venice told the Evening Standard: "This is a serious crime because of the risk to everyone involved, including the riders, pedestrians and the victims of the snatch. This is completely unacceptable."

Moped robbery
Moped robbery

Credit: Newsflare

Elizabeth O'Neill was a victim of a moped snatch and grab robbery, telling the Guardian: "Two guys on a moped snatched [my mobile phone] out of my hand and rode off. I felt really stupid.

"There was just the realisation, 'Oh my God, how do I get home - my card is in my phone?' And how could I contact anyone to tell them what's happened?"

Police say these individuals can steal a parked and locked scooter within seconds.

But the Met Police are trying to keep up with the criminals by launching extra covert patrols, more sophisticated forensic technology, and a specialist traffic advisor who can authorise high-speed pursuits at any time.

It's not clear whether the jewellery heist individuals are a part of this rise in the moped crime wave, or whether their getaway vehicles were coincidentally motorscooters. Police are appealing to anyone with information about this, or any other incident, to come forward.

Featured Image Credit: Newsflare

Topics: robbery, UK, London