Nottingham Mugging: 'Dancing thief' wraps leg around victim to steal phone

This incident captures a sneaky thief wrapping his leg around a victim and performing a strange dance to steal his phone.

CCTV footage shows the pickpocket pretending to be drunk to disarm his victim in Nottingham. A short clip depicts him approaching the victim shortly after 7:30 a.m. in Clumber Street, in the city center.

He greets him with a fist bump, engages in conversation, and then begins dancing, placing one leg between the victim’s and jumping up and down. The thief then reaches into the victim’s jacket pocket and pulls out a mobile phone.

Inspector Paul Gummer said, “Officers traced the offender’s movements to a McDonald’s nearby. By reviewing CCTV footage from the branch, we obtained a clear image of the suspect involved in this distraction theft. If you recognize him, please contact us.”

The suspect appeared sober on McDonald’s CCTV footage just minutes before the theft, yet presented as intoxicated to the victim. Detectives suspect this was a deliberate act, a ruse to appear harmless and jovial to disarm the victim.

Police noted that it is a common tactic for such criminals to feign performing a traditional cultural dance as a cynical distraction while they target the victim’s pockets.

“I would therefore encourage the public to be vigilant against this brazen crime, avoid it happening to you, and watch out for it happening to anyone else, particularly those who may be slightly too merry to recognize what’s happening to them during this festive period,” he mentioned.