London Moped Robbery up 50 Per Cent in One Year, Woman ‘Fighting for Her Life’

London Police dealt with an average of 60 moped muggings a day last year, a 50 per cent surge in this form of crime in just one year under Mayor Sadiq Khan.

The city’s Metropolitan Police received 22,025 crime reports linked to mopeds and motorcycles in the 12 months to May, or about 423 on average per week, while there were 14,699, or about 282 on average per week, the year before.

There had been a sharp increase last summer, police said, including a peak of 2,593 crimes in July, with monthly figures falling since.

Since 2012, scooter-enabled crime has surged dramatically, from 827 incidents to more than 23,000 in 2017.

The news comes as a woman lies in hospital with life-threatening injuries after being attacked and robbed by men using a moped in north London on Monday evening, Get West London reports.

The passenger punched the 24-year-old after two men approached her on the vehicle, making off with her mobile phone and handbag.

Also on Wednesday, a man who stole a moped and threatened to attack a police officer on an unmarked police bike with a claw hammer was sentenced to two years in jail.

Police Sergeant Tony McGovern, from the Met’s Roads and Transport Policing Command, commented: “Officers are dedicated to stopping moped thieves and bringing them to justice, which is exactly why happened in this investigation.

“They continued to pursue the suspect even when he threatened to attack them with a hammer.”

And on the same day, famous comedian Michael McIntyre was robbed of his watch by moped thieves armed with hammers as he waited to collect his children from school.

Speaking at the Police Crime Committee at London’s City Hall on Wednesday, Met assistant commissioner Martin Hewitt said:

“We are prioritising our resources where there is the greatest risk, harm, and threat to communities. Moped-enabled crime is a huge priority and we’ve seen significant reductions.”