Reporter Livvy Haydock meets three of the UK’s newest type of criminal: thieves who commit their crimes using mopeds.
All from London, they have contributed to an alarming rise in violent crime in the city. In 2017 there were over 23,000 crimes committed on motorbikes, an average of 64 per day. This is a 163 percent rise on the previous year.
Livvy rides on the back of a moped with a thief who points out which members of the public make good targets, and which ones are protecting themselves.
She accompanies an armed robber as he scouts jewellers in Notting Hill to point out security flaws, and she also helps one man, who previously boasted about being a good race car driver, quit crime - by giving him a chance to impress in a Formula 1 Renault test session.
She also learns about the advanced phone security hacking involved in making the thefts profitable. One thief is able to sell five of the latest
smartphones, all robbed within one afternoon, for £150-£250 each when the normal price on the black market is £30-40 per phone. This higher price is because the thief’s buyer is able to recycle the phones abroad without any loss of functionality.
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