Moment brazen thief steals hairdresser's £1,300 phone in plain sight – would you have spotted him?
Emma Horne, 42, was working at her salon in Warrington, Cheshire, last month when a man carrying a newspaper came in to ask for a haircut.
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While the hairdresser begin to explain she didn't cut men's hair, the thief claims he is asking on behalf of his wife.
Footage then shows Emma moving behind her desk in order to grab a price list flyer.
However, this is when the thief strikes - tactically moving his newspaper to cover the hairdresser's phone, which is lying on top of the desk.
After shadily placing the paper over the £1,300 Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, he appears to slowly shift the device under the covering.
Orienting it closer to the edge, he locks a firm grip on Emma's precious device.
The other hairdresser and clients in the background remained oblivious as the thief executed his fiendish plan.
Finally, as Emma locates the flyer and hands it to him, the man quickly grabs his newspaper, with the phone underneath it and firmly in his grip, and walks briskly out of the establishment.
Emma said it only took her a few minutes to realise her phone was missing, but by this point she and a client were unable to find the man when they looked down a nearby street.
After returning to the salon and checking the CCTV cameras, they realised they had filmed the man's cunning theft.
The incident has been reported to Cheshire Police and the force has confirmed enquiries are ongoing.
Moment model chases thief after her phone is ripped from her hand in London
Emma said: "It happened so fast he was literally in the salon for minutes.
"I went behind the counter to get a price list for him, then he put the newspaper over my phone and swiped it. It was gone within seconds.
"I felt angry and I was dead upset because it's the fact that someone came and took my property right in front of my face. He was standing right next to me.
"He actually looks at the cameras and everything so he knew the cameras were there because he looks right at it.
"Panic set in because I've got my whole work schedule and everything on my phone. Everything's just gone."
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After realising the device was gone, and her sensitive information at risk, Emma went straight to the bank to freeze her cards.
Although her quick thinking prevented any money leaving her accounts, it also meant she was unable to access any of her funds.
The hairdresser added: "It happened so fast. The anger is setting in now. I'm quite frustrated with it because I've got to go out and get myself a new phone and everything now.
"These people think they can go around and do this and get away with it."
'HE DID IT SO FAST'
Emma says she bought the expensive phone just eight months ago and had only recently finished paying for it.
She insists she usually welcomes everybody into her salon but believes she'll be more wary of potential customers in future.
Emma said: "I feel a bit wary about things now.
"He did it so fast, we just didn't see him. It makes you feel a bit uneasy.
"We've got cameras for our own security and they're still coming in and doing it.
"We're quite friendly in our salon and we welcome everybody but I suppose you've still got to be on your guard because these people are out there going around nicking phones.
"Someone said they saw him lurking outside so he was obviously watching me put my phone down."
A spokesperson for Cheshire Police said: "At 11.38am on Tuesday 24 June, police were called to a report of theft at a hair salon in Time Square, Warrington.
"The caller reported that approximately 30 minutes earlier, an unknown man had entered the salon posing as a client, and stole a mobile phone.
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