Shocking moment a small child steals a cafe employee’s phone as the victim is distracted by a scheming mother
- Video shows child appears to steal worker’s phone at London cafe
- The child’s mother appears to stage an ‘argument’ over the switch, distracting staff
A shocking video shows the moment a child appears to steal a phone belonging to a cafe employee in an apparent scam carried out by his mother.
The incident happened yesterday at a cafe in Lewisham, south-east London, after the child’s mother apparently distracted a worker and his colleague by asking for change.
The distraction allows the child to sneak in and swipe the mobile, before the couple quickly exit the store with the staff oblivious to what happened right under their noses.
At the start of the clip, the mother stands with the child at the cafe counter chatting with a member of staff.
The staff member appears to be counting notes for the woman who distracts her by apparently giving more change and questioning the amount she is getting.
Footage from a cafe in Lewisham, southeast London, shows a child appearing to steal a phone belonging to a worker
The mum appeared to stage a ‘dispute’ with the staff over the change, at one point even going behind the counter – giving the child an opportunity to swipe the phone.
The woman then takes the notes in her hand before gesturing around the coffee, apparently trying to distract the waiter.
As the woman continues to haggle over two cans of juice, she walks over to the two cafe employees and points to a display case of baked goods behind them.
The duo look away as the small child, dressed in a blue coat, sneaks up to the counter and quickly slips the phone off the counter in the blink of an eye and you miss it.
He then walks away from the counter and unzip a bag around his waist, trying to slip the phone into it without getting caught.
His mother, apparently aware of his successful robbery, quickly abandons her exchange with the workers and places a hand on the back of her son’s head, guiding him out of the store with their ill-gotten gains.
The video was shared on social media yesterday with the caption: ‘It happened today in Lewisham, change scammers and a little one who stole the phone.’
As the child appears to transfer the phone to a bag, the mother quickly guides him out of the store
The post received hundreds of likes with dozens of people stunned by the actions of the youngster and the mother.
One said: ‘Really outrageous but Romanians in London use children all the time, sad that children are being taught this at such a young age.’
Another added: “That poor kid. Wow.’
A third replied: “It’s outrageous.”
Another commented: “Crazy out there at that age.”
Over 90,000 phones were stolen last year in London according to Met Police data, which equates to over 250 phones a day.
