Two Algerian migrants have been jailed for stealing designer watches worth over £100,000 from black taxi passengers in London. Txomin Huare-Place, 30, and Ayoub Harek, 23, targeted wealthy individuals in the West End, using force to snatch high-value timepieces.
The pair were arrested after police spotted them lurking outside the Millennium Hotel in Knightsbridge on November 9 last year. An investigation linked them to three robberies involving Patek Philippe watches valued at £32,000, £44,000, and £60,000.
At Southwark Crown Court, Huare-Place, of Lewisham, was jailed for three years and nine months after admitting three counts of robbery. Harek, of no fixed address, received a three-year sentence for two counts of robbery. Both were aided by an Arabic interpreter during sentencing.
Judge Mark Weekes described a pattern of deliberate, targeted offending in public places, aggravated by group offending and the high value of items. The court heard that Harek used false documentation to travel in and out of the country, indicating an organised operation.
Victim Eric Willoughby, whose £60,000 watch was stolen, said in a statement: 'Since the robbery I have experienced heightened anxiety and paranoia when out in public. I frequently feel vulnerable and unsafe in London, a city where I used to feel safe.'
