Moment phone snatcher receives instant karma as he's knocked off his bike by furious Londoners - and loses shoe that police use to catch him

Daily Mail​

4 hours ago

This is the shocking moment a phone snatcher is captured being knocked off his bike by furious Londoners before losing a shoe that police later used to catch him.
Spencer Duarte, of Saffron Walden, was tackled off his e-bike by members of the public after he stole a phone from an innocent victim's hand in Ludgate Hill, London, on August 7 last year.
Dramatic video footage showed the moment a quick-thinking pedestrian leapt into the street and intercepted the robber, who fell into the road while on his bike.
Duarte, who initially stood up and was able to get back on his bike, was then chased down by two more members of the public. Cornered on the side of the pavement, he was pulled from his bike a second time as he attempted to flee.
The phone thief, dressed in a flourescent top and helmet, then proceeded to run across the road away from the furious Londoners.
In a last minute attempt at halting the robber, another four pedestrians reached out to try and grab hold of Duarte, who darted at speed between the different men before making a successful exit down the road.
During the ensuing struggle, Duarte lost a shoe, which police detectives later used to catch him for his crimes as a result of the DNA it held.
The 28-year-old, who was spotted and arrested by Metropolitan Police officers on September 9, admitted to one count of theft at Inner London Crown Court on Monday.
He also accepted that he had items in his rucksack going equipped to steal.
Duarte is due to be sentenced on September 12.
Dubbed the 'Cinderella phone snatcher', Andrew Walker, physical forensics manager of the City of London Police, described how Duarte was ultimately caught as a result of his trainer being left at the scene.
He said: 'We were able to get sufficient levels of DNA from the shoe to obtain a single, major profile that was suitable for searching against the national DNA database.
'This search generated a 'hit' to a male whose profile had previously been uploaded.
'The slipper fitted our Cinderella and we were able to bring him before the courts.'
Jake Dean, Police Constable of the City of London Police, said: 'Do not come to the City and think you can steal from residents, workers or visitors without paying the penalty.
'Our targeted patrols, excellent police work and extensive CCTV will mean you will be caught and brought to justice.
In a last minute attempt at halting the robber, another four pedestrians reached out to try and grab hold of Duarte, who darted at speed between the different men before making a successful exit down the road
'Phone snatching has a significant impact on victims and our key priority has been to reduce the number of phones stolen and relentlessly target those criminals responsible.'
The dramatic video comes as it was revealed that a staggering nine phones an hour were reported stolen in London last year, at a cost of £50million.
Amounting to an annual 80,000 smartphones stolen, senior Scotland Yard bosses admitted there was a 'growing and very serious problem' as they struggle to grapple with the 'organised criminal enterprise '.
They revealed how three-quarters of stolen devices in the capital are sent abroad, with vast numbers ending up in both Algeria and China.
Appearing before a House of Commons committee, the Metropolitan Police officers said the black market for smartphones was driving rates of theft, robbery and knife crime.
It was even seeing those criminals who were once involved in drug crime pivoting towards smartphone theft and robbery as an alternative means of illicit income.
The officers warned that gangs of teenagers on bikes were committing 10 to 20 thefts at a time in some parts of London.
James Conway, the Met Police's lead on phone theft, said the scale of phone theft in London last year had a street value of around £20million.
However, the replacement value of stolen phones for members of the public and insurance companies was estimated at £50million last year.
'Around half of the robberies in London are mobile phone-related...so it's driving our robbery problem,' he added.
DCS Conway stressed that tough enforcement action appeared to be encouraging a decline in offences.
'In the first couple of months of this financial year (there has been) around a 50 per cent reduction in theft,' he said.
'And around a 13 per cent reduction in robbery when we compare to the opening months of the previous financial year.'