Algerian Criminal Networks Escalate to Targeted Luxury Watch Robberies in London
The man pacing agitatedly outside Cecconi's upscale Italian restaurant in Mayfair appeared to be engaged in a heated phone argument, waving his device and ranting loudly. This theatrical display, however, masked his true role: he was a spotter for an Algerian mugging gang, meticulously scanning wealthy diners for potential targets. His selection fell upon two men enjoying a window-seat supper—BBC Breakfast presenter Ben Thompson, wearing a £7,000 Rolex, and his millionaire businessman friend adorned with a diamond-encrusted Patek Philippe valued at £150,000.
Within five minutes of leaving the restaurant, both men were brutally assaulted by a six-strong gang who ripped the watches from their wrists with such force that Mr. Thompson sustained a lasting scar. This incident, which recently saw two perpetrators sentenced at the Old Bailey, signals a disturbing new trend in London's criminal landscape. Algerian gangs, long dominant in the global phone-snatching market, are now graduating to more lucrative, targeted robberies against the affluent.
Pattern of Violence Emerges Across Affluent Districts
Merely five days later, another Algerian offender—a teenage illegal immigrant—appeared at Southwark Crown Court for a strikingly similar crime just 300 yards from the initial attack. Mohamed Sellaoui, then 17, collaborated with an unidentified accomplice to trail Jiangfeng Ni, a Chinese chemistry professor holidaying in London, after he dined at Langan's Brasserie. The pair violently assaulted him, stealing his £36,000 Patek Philippe watch, an attack captured on camera and later revealed by the Daily Mail.
These cases are not coincidental but part of an alarming strategic shift. Algerian criminal networks have established London as the global epicenter for phone thefts, with the city of Algiers serving as the world's largest resale market for stolen devices. However, diminishing returns from phone snatches are driving a pivot toward high-value watch robberies. David McKelvey, a former Metropolitan Police Detective Chief Inspector now leading private agency TM Eye, notes this evolution was inevitable. 'Criminals adapt rapidly,' he explains. 'A simple risk-versus-reward calculation makes stealing one luxury watch far more profitable than multiple phones.'
Phone Theft Decline Fuels New Criminal Enterprise
London's phone theft statistics reveal a notable decline, with recorded incidents dropping 12% from 81,365 in 2024 to 71,391 last year, according to Metropolitan Police data. This reduction is attributed to enhanced police tactics—such as drone surveillance to identify e-bike thieves—and increased public vigilance against displaying phones in central London. Consequently, criminals are adapting through surreptitious thefts in bars and, more aggressively, violent muggings targeting visibly wealthy individuals post-dining.
The rationale is stark: why risk imprisonment for a £50-100 phone resale when a single watch can yield 50 times that amount? This shift is exemplified by gangs like one recently linked to 5,000 handset thefts worth £5 million, whose members—Zakaria Senadjki, Ahmed Abdelhakim Belhanafi, Nazih Cheraitia, and Riyadh Mamouni—snatched devices from pedestrians and tourists across central London. Upon hacking accessed phones, they emptied bank accounts and fraudulently took loans in victims' names, then shipped devices to Algeria bundled in tin foil to evade detection.
Little Algiers: The Hub Connecting London Thefts to Global Markets
The logistical nexus for this trade is 'Little Algiers,' centered on Blackstock Road in Finsbury Park, North London. Once associated with terrorism concerns near the Finsbury Park mosque, the area now thrives on secular crime, with stolen phones rapidly processed here before shipment to Algeria. Over 1,000 phones, averaging £300-400 each, were intercepted in a single Heathrow-bound shipment last year. Most end up in El Harrach market in Algiers, where they are sold as new.
Algerian migration to the UK has tripled since 2000, with approximately 30,000 now residing mostly in London, per recent estimates. Home Office figures indicate 190 Algerian men in British prisons, a number rising steadily. Many arrive illegally via small boats to Spanish islands before onward travel to Britain, as seen with gang members Adam Zawi, Oussama Fadage, and Aouidj Abderaouf, jailed last year for stealing £4,000 in electronics from city workers in a single night.
High-Profile Cases Highlight Escalating Violence and Impact
Notable incidents underscore the severity of this trend. Bridgerton actress Genevieve Chenneour was attacked by Zacariah Boulares, an Algerian-descent individual born in London, who attempted to snatch her phone in a Kensington coffee shop and had previously threatened broadcaster Aled Jones with a machete. In another case, Enzo Conticello stole a handbag containing a Fabergé egg and watch worth £2.1 million from brand director Rosie Dawson in Soho—the egg remains unrecovered.
BBC presenter Ben Thompson's experience has left lasting trauma. 'I no longer feel safe in London,' he stated in a victim impact statement, describing heightened anxiety and altered behavior to avoid walking in the city. Similarly, former boxer Amir Khan, robbed of a £70,000 watch in Leytonstone in 2022, expressed fear of going out in London, though his attackers were not Algerian.
Mr. McKelvey emphasizes the profound impact on victims: 'Tens of thousands have endured the shock of phone theft, but these violent muggings are worse due to the brutality and sentimental value of stolen items.' He urges the Metropolitan Police to swiftly address this trend to restore safety in central London, as the city grapples with a criminal evolution from opportunistic snatches to calculated, high-stakes robberies.
