Police launch appeal to find brazen thief caught on camera stealing phone from sleeping victim after he fails to turn up at court to be sentenced
- See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source
By RYAN HOOPER, CRIME CORRESPONDENT
Published: | Updated:
A predatory thief caught on camera stealing the mobile phone from a sleeping man's pocket has gone on the run.
Police are appealing for information after Paul Langan, from Tower Hamlets in London, failed to turn up at court to be sentenced for theft.
He admitted stealing the device from his victim, who appeared to be sleeping on some steps near Liverpool Street station at 7pm on Friday, April 24.
Footage captured by City of London Police caught the moment Langan, 58, gently approached his prone victim before casually sliding the mobile away and into his pocket.
Control room staff quickly called an ambulance and sent officers to the scene.
Cameras continued to track Langan and he was subsequently arrested.
Officers gave assistance to the man and his phone was returned to him.
Police Constable Sachin Kumar, of the City of London Police, said: 'The City of London Police use one of the most advanced CCTV networks in the country.
Paul Langan, 58, was caught on CCTV by City of London Police stealing a sleeping victim's mobile phone
Langan approached the sleeping victim near Liverpool Street station...
...before swiping his victim's phone and fleeing the scene
City of London Police sent officers to the scene and quickly arrested their suspect as he made off with his victim's mobile phone
'That allows officers and control room staff to move individual cameras and track suspects in real time.
'If it hadn't been for our cameras and the quick thinking of control room staff, it's likely that Langan might have got away with his crimes.
'He is a brazen and opportunistic thief and instead of checking if the man needed assistance, he stole from a person who was in a vulnerable state.'
But Langan failed to attend court for his sentencing in June. A warrant has since been issued for his arrest.
Anyone with information as to his whereabouts is asked to contact police.
KioskNews shows a cleaned-up reading view extracted from the publisher’s page — the original always lives on their site, not ours.