Alert as thieves snatch mobile phones

We’re investigating after an increase in reports of phones being snatched in Bristol.

More than a dozen incidents have been reported this week. Two people on an electric motorbike are targeting pedestrians waiting at bus stops or crossing points, with the pillion passenger taking the phones. They’re described as wearing black clothing and with their faces covered.

We’ve deployed officers but have been unable to locate the suspects.

Initial enquiries have led officers to recover a number of SIM cards and phone cases which had been abandoned.

Neighbourhood Sergeant Sean Underwood said: “We’re targeting our uniformed patrols in the area and have alerted schools, colleges and the university to make their students aware, as many of the victims are young people.

“Officers are also linked in with Bristol City Council’s CCTV team to make sure any suspicious activity is reported immediately.”

He added: “We’d like to thank the members of the public who stepped in and called 999 on behalf of the victims. Thankfully we’re not aware of anyone being injured, but understandably people have been left shocked by what’s happened.”

We’ve identified 23 similar reports so far this month (to 16 October). Most of those targeted have been aged in their teens or 20s, but there have been older victims as well.

Incidents have happened in areas including Colston Avenue, The Horsefair, Park Street, Prince Street, Redcliff Hill, Rupert Street, St Augustine’s Parade, Union Street and Whiteladies Road.

If you’ve witnessed any of these incidents, or have any dashcam or other footage we’d like to hear from you.

There are some things you can choose to do to deter phone thieves:

• Keep your phone out of sight in a pocket or bag when it’s not in use
• Use its security features to set up a PIN and a strong password/passcode
• Activate or install a tracking app
• Turn off message previews so reset or log-in codes can’t be seen when your phone is locked
• Back up regularly and keep a note of important information and numbers, including the IMEI, which you can find by typing *#06#.

You can find advice on settings and security hints and tips on manufacturers’ websites: Help pages for iPhones and Help pages for Android phones