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UK Moped Thief Boasts of Making £1,500 a Day: Police Can’t Stop Us

London is gripped by another wave of moped crime, including stabbings, theft, assault and murder. As police strive to come up with new ways to stop the criminals from preying on innocent pedestrians and motorists, one reformed moped thief boasts that “police can’t stop us.”
Moped gang is ready to strike, armed with hammers 5 photos
Photo: Motofire
Thieves leaving the areaAbandoned PanigalePeople stop thieves from stealing bikePeople stop thieves from stealing bike
His name is Lucas and he’s been mugging people on a bike or moped since he was 13, he tells The Sun in an interview. Though he says he didn’t turn to a life of crime because he wanted to but because he had no other choice, there’s some pride in the way he talks about choosing his targets and carrying out an attack.

You can never catch me on the bike, they can never catch me in action. No way,” he says. He was quick and he chose targets that were likely not to miss anything from what he stole, i.e. rich-looking people.

Notice the past tense above: as quick and smart as he thought himself, police still caught Lucas. He did a stint in jail (he says he doesn’t remember how long it was, but it mustn’t have been that long) and is now reformed. Still, he doesn’t feel sorry for what he did because, he reasons, it was the least violent way he could think of to provide for himself and his family.

Because he didn’t use a gun or hurt people physically, he doesn’t feel remorse. If anything, he’s proud to recall how easily he could make £1,500 by stealing from unaware people.

It depends how wild you are. If you're wild, you can just drive on the pavement, take it, drive off,” he says. “Sometimes [I can take] anything - it can be bag, watch, chains. The person might have a chain on their neck, that's an easy get.

Asked about the current wave of crime, he laughs: police are powerless against moped thieves. They can’t engage in chases because they would be held accountable if other people were injured during the chase, and because moped thieves are too fast for them. “You can't stop someone on a moped, police can't stop us on a moped anyway,” he says.

The Met Police is said to be deploying a new tactic that will help put an end to moped crime, which involves sending out officers disguised as delivery drivers.
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About the author: Elena Gorgan
Elena Gorgan profile photo

Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends.
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