A woman has documented the terrifying time a suspected phone thief pulled a knife on her. She took to social media to detail the terrifying ordeal.
She took to her TikTok account (@beks.official) said she was heading towards Haggerston Station on her way home when she heard a distressed woman scream ‘stop him, stop him’. The shocked traveller looked up and saw the woman yelling with two men running towards her.
She then claims that a car pulled up and the two alleged thieves got in. The victim is then reported to have run in front of the car, but one thief jumped out and pushed her to the ground.
A second suspect then pinned the witness making the video to the wall and pulled a knife on her, she claims. In a later video, she shared that she was with a group of people and was not alone when the alleged incident took place.
She said: “Just a girl trying to get home safely in London when I approach Haggerston Station, I hear somebody yelling ‘stop him, stop him’ and they’re coming towards me and there’s a woman screaming with two guys running in front of her.
“When I turn my head to the right I see a car pull up and two guys get in. It’s a T-zone so the car can’t go forward they can only go right or left.
“She runs in front of the car, stops the car, this woman had guts, these two guys get out of the car and one of them pushes her onto the road on her backside, the other guy comes running straight towards me and I block him and we both end up pushed up against the brick and then he turns around and pulls out a knife.”
A Met Police spokesperson said: “We urge victims to report their phone as stolen as soon as possible to maximise the chance of catching the perpetrator, too often thefts are reported hours or days later.”
What to do if you witness a phone snatching
It’s important not to get involved, as these thieves have been known to carry weapons including knives. Here’s a few things you can do as per the advice from The Metropolitan Police.
Secure your phone
Use your phone’s security features to stop someone using your phone if it’s stolen. Choose a strong PIN, passcode, password or pattern.
Get your IMEI number
Get your phone’s IMEI number by typing *#06# on your phone keypad. Keep a note of it somewhere other than on your phone. The IMEI can help track the phone down if it’s lost or stolen.
Use a tracking app
Set up a tracking app on your phone so you can see where it is from another deviceand use it as soon as possible, before thieves have a chance to disable it.
Turn off message previews
Turn off message previews, as thieves won’t see any messages about reset or login codes when your phone is locked.
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