Video footage shows TalkTV reporter Samara Gill being attacked by a man near Hyde Park in London while she was reporting on pickpockets in the area. The clip, shared on X, captures the moment a man approaches her as she speaks to the camera and reaches his hand towards her. Gill can be heard screaming and pleading with the man to leave her and her team alone.
Reporter describes feeling intimidated
In the video, Gill is seen reporting from Marble Arch and Hyde Park on Albanian and Romanian pickpockets. At the start of the clip, she says: "It's come to light through multiple media publications that there is a much darker underbelly to all of this. Albanian and Romanian operate in this area."
Speaking to the camera, she reveals that she is being circled by some of the gang members and that she feels "quite intimidated". Later in the clip, the man gets close to her, seemingly attempting to grab the camera as she backs away.
Reporter pleads as man follows
As she says "we're going to go", the man follows her and puts his hood up. She can then be heard screaming as he continues to lunge his hand at her, before saying "I'm calling 999". She is then heard pleading: "Please, we're going," repeating "we're going" multiple times.
Gangs causing chaos in area
British media have reported on migrant camps, consisting of immigrants from Eastern European countries like Romania and Albania, setting up around Hyde Park and allegedly engaging in pickpocketing. According to workers in the area, the gangs often consist of pickpockets, beggars and shoplifters, and are run like a business with shifts and managers.
Such gangs have caused chaos in the area in recent years, particularly around the busy Oxford Street area. The gang is said to be banned from the M&S flagship store on the street after stealing vodka and steak.
A barista who works in the area told the Daily Mail: "What you have to understand is that these are professionals. They each know their role, whether that's as a beggar, a pickpocket, or a shoplifter. They will come in each morning very early to get a coffee, sometimes be a bit cheeky and try to get one for free, but they don't steal from here anymore. Other places get ransacked."
