Snatched in seconds by the muggers on two wheels

Alarming increase in phone grabs by masked thugs riding bikes and e-scooters | Overall London robberies soar by 20% but just 5.7% of culprits are detected by police | I want the Met this to declare war on and Apple must act too, says minister

- Martin Bentham

APURGE on weapon-wielding muggers using e-bikes and mopeds to rob Londoners of their phones was called for today as the capital's Victims' Commissioner warned of the trauma that the crime spree is inflicting on the public.

Claire Waxman said muggings were leaving victims suffering from long-term trauma and creating fear in public spaces and could have a "serious impact on a person's sense of safety".

The menace was brought into sharp focus earlier this week when a prolific mugger riding a high-speed e-bike was brought to justice. Sonny Stringer, 28, from Islington, snatched mobile phones from 24 people in a day-long crime spree across central London.

He was caught when police made "tactical contact" with the rear wheel of his bike and knocked him off.

The Government's policing minister, Chris Philp, echoed Ms Waxman's call as he warned that phone muggings in the capital were "far too high" despite declines in such offending elsewhere in the country. Mr Philp, who has already met the tech giant Apple to press it to make it easier to trace and disable stolen phones, added that he wanted the Met to "declare war on this crime type".

Scotland Yard sources said the Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley also wanted phone manufacturers to thwart the muggers, often wearing masks, by installing "kill switches" which would allow mobiles to be disabled as soon as a theft is reported.

Sir Mark met the tech giants in the autumn with London Mayor Sadiq Khan to press for action and is understood to be disappointed with the slow pace of progress. He believes that the phone companies could go further and faster in "designing out" the crime.

The focus today, however, was on the plight of victims following a continuing spate of violent and distressing muggings carried out in the capital by knife-carrying robbers on two wheels.