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April 26 2006

More than 50 children are being mugged every day in London, mostly for mobile phones, according to figures which show that school-age robberies are soaring again after funding for a Government crackdown on street crime was stopped.

The figures for robberies of juveniles are the worst for three years and have risen by nearly 50 per cent since 2002.


Commissioner Sir Ian Blair: 'This cannot go on. It has got to stop'
Scotland Yard disclosed yesterday that in the 10 months to February this year 14,900 victims aged 17 or under were robbed of personal property. Of those, 138 were under 10. Juveniles accounted for nearly 40 per cent of overall robbery victims in the Metropolitan Police area - a total of 39,485.

The figures show a 44 per cent rise in muggings of under-10s in the past three years and a 47 per cent rise in the same period among 10 to 17 year olds.

Many muggers are also young. Despite fears about the theft of iPods, they were involved in only four per cent of muggings. Mobile phones were involved in nearly half.

Though only the Met has so far disclosed the age profile of mugging victims, it is believed that robberies at school gates and of youngsters as they go home has risen in other areas.

Street robberies are growing faster in England and Wales than at any time in the last three years, recent Home Office figures showed. In 2002, the Prime Minister urged police to crack down on muggings, which were then escalating. Forces were given cash to fund labour-intensive operations to tackle robbers.

The Street Crime Initiative proved that tactics including daily tracking of robbers, driving victims around so they could identify attackers immediately and using sophisticated forensic techniques at crime scenes secured convictions of a prolific hard core of robbers and produced dramatic falls in robbery figures.

However, that funding - which financed the duties and overtime of 660 anti-street crime officers in the Met at its height - has dried up and those chasing muggers now have to compete for resources with other areas, including anti-terrorist work. This is frustrating for some officers as the identity of many muggers is known or suspected.

Police chiefs, particularly in the Met, are concerned about the resurgence of young people being mugged. Evidence shows that youngsters who are repeatedly robbed often turn to mugging themselves as a form of defence.

It also makes many youngsters - mostly schoolboys, though some girls are involved as victims and robbers - nervous about moving around certain parts of London. Knives are a feature in a number of muggings, though many involve bullying and intimidation. Bus stops and train stations are "hot spots" and the "going home" period between 2.30pm and 4pm is a key time.

The Met Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair, is working with the phone industry to ensure that stolen handsets are "blocked" and rendered virtually worthless. Such negotiations, which were taking place three years ago, have again become a pressing issue.

"This cannot go on. It has got to stop," Sir Ian said.

He accepted that many parents bought children mobiles to keep in touch and stay safe. "Our advice is to [continue to] do exactly that," he said. "But what we have got to do is get to a situation where there is no point in stealing them. The only way we can do that is with the industry."