Brazen moped thief grabs laptop from woman in cafe

A woman working at a cafe in London had her laptop ripped from her hands by a gang that sped off on mopeds.

The incident was caught by CCTV at the Bread and Bean cafe in Archway, and the footage posted on Twitter.

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It shows a criminal wearing a helmet walking calmly into the cafe and approaching the unsuspecting woman's table by the window, before snatching the laptop and dashing off.

He jumps onto the back of a moped waiting outside and makes his escape.

"Am in Broad and Bean. Five mins ago, lad in helmet comes in, grabs laptop, mate turns up on a moped, lad shoves people out of the way, jumps on and off they go," tweeted one woman who was a witness to the theft.

"So fast, too fast for anyone to react and stop them. No number plate."

Islington Police say they are aware of the incident and are investigating.

The cafe owner, Valbona Sadiku, tells the Mail that it was the second time that the cafe had been targeted by a moped gang in the space of just three weeks.

"It's unbelievable that these moped gangs will now actually enter people's property, it's gone to another level, it's horrific," she said.

Moped gangs are becoming an increasing problem on the capital's streets. Just last week, a group of men were jailed for carrying out more than 100 robberies in just three weeks earlier this year.

Armed with hammers and a metal bar, they stole mobile phones and other valuables, making a quick getaway on mopeds.

Metropolitan Police figures show that in the year to June, there were 16,158 thefts by people using mopeds – more than three times as many as during the year before.

Police have complained that their efforts to catch moped gangs are being hampered by legislation, with fears that they could be prosecuted if a chase ended in a crash.

The government is now reviewing the situation.