Australian Model Has Her Phone Stolen in London for the Second Time in Three Months (5 photos + 3 videos)
An Australian model has been targeted for the second time in three months in a so-called 'safe' area of London. Emma Van Der Hoek said the incident happened on Tuesday afternoon while she was out for a walk in Highbury. 
The footage, taken on the corner of Sotheby's Road and Highbury Park, shows a woman walking along the pavement looking at her smartphone. A man in black and wearing a mask suddenly runs up to her and snatches the device before disappearing around the corner.
Van Der Hoek gives chase but fails to catch the criminal. Another man in black follows them like a shadow. 
The model wrote on her social media page: "My phone was stolen in London yesterday!!! This is the second time in three months, and all in my so-called "safe" area."
She complained about the abuse from online trolls, who blamed her for the incident. 
"The video has almost half a million views. The comments are full of accusations against me," she said.
"People have become so accustomed to theft in London that they have started blaming the victims instead of holding the criminals accountable. If you stole my phone, please return it. I will delete the video. If you have any information about what happened, please contact me!" 
The number of phone thefts in London has reached a record high. The situation is especially alarming in the West End, where 37 people are losing their gadgets every day. Over the past four years, about 231,000 cases of phone thefts and robberies have been recorded in the capital. The epicentre of the crimes is the West End theatre district, where about 40,000 devices have been stolen over the same period. The situation is similar in St James, where luxury streets and royal residences coexist with crowds of unsuspecting tourists and shoppers.
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