Pickpocket gangs targeting victims leaving banks

Organised criminal gangs have been targeting vulnerable people as they leave banks with their cash, the Metropolitan Police has warned.

In so-called "follow off" crimes, a thief loiters inside a bank identifying victims.

Accomplices then pickpocket them as they leave.

The force has said targeted efforts to curb the issue in three London areas by raising awareness and using CCTV to spot culprits has resulted in follow-crime being cut by 75%.

The Bank Safe project was set up in 2022 in response to the level of follow off crime increase.

It involves local police officers carrying out targeted patrols in areas most affected by thefts around banks, awareness raising among customers and local communities of the tactics used by thieves and detailed investigations of CCTV to identify and arrest repeat offenders.

The areas are Ealing in west London and Stratford and Ilford in east London.

Sgt David James, who runs it, called distraction theft a "personal crime" that could have life-changing consequences.

"In most cases, victims do not know they have been targeted and tend to blame themselves for losing their hard-earned cash," he said.

In one case caught on CCTV in Orpington, south-east London, in 2021 an elderly man was followed from the bank.

As he boarded a bus the driver was distracted and the thief made her move.

The Met Police said: "The perpetrator was arrested and sentenced to 4.5 years."

The operation would help get criminal gangs off London's streets, Sgt James added.

'Insidious'

Partners in the project include the Dedicated Card and Payment Crime Unit (DCPCU), finance industry and Age UK.

Catriona Still is the fraud prevention chief at the DCPCU, a joint Met and City of London Police team.

“The DCPCU has been working hard to combat branch follow-off crime and has trained over 400 branch employees in high-risk areas across the UK in the past 12 months alone," she said.

She said the work done between the DCPCU and Met had stopped bank customers having "significant" amounts of cash stolen.

It is estimated that 66% of victims are aged over 60.

Age UK London's John McGeachy said older people were more likely to bank in person than other age groups.

"It’s particularly insidious to target them in this way as they leave the bank with their cash," he said.

“Being a victim of this, or any other type of crime, can have serious consequences for people’s confidence and mental health."

He welcomed efforts to clamp down on thieves so people could bank safely.