One of Britain’s leading criminologists has warned the recent spate of Canada Goose coat muggings could be the start of a new ‘luxury crime trend’ and has warned all those who own the expensive jackets to be cautious.
The intensely desirable coats – which can be flogged for as much as £1,700 – have been targeted by muggers across the country resulting in cars being broken into, pedestrians robbed, neighbours stealing from neighbours and even knife attacks.
On Sunday, shocking footage emerged showing two hooded thugs trying to steal one of the coveted coats in broad daylight at a Kent train station.
In December, a man claimed he had been slashed in the face with a knife while being mugged for his coat and shared a video of himself in hospital with a scar across his face.
Captioning the video, ‘don’t die for Canada Goose’, he implored his followers to be careful whilst wearing the plush jackets.
Last month, a Transport for London chief warned youngsters travelling on the Tube were being targeted for North Face and Canada Goose coats – with an 83 per cent rise in the number of thefts recorded from 2,935 in 2022 to 5,378 in 2023.
Yesterday two hooded thugs were seen trying to steal a man’s £1,000 Canada Goose jacket at a rail station
In October, a young woman filmed herself confronting a man at a train station who she claimed had ‘stolen’ her Canada Goose coat from the outside storage facility at her flat.
There have also been reports of young London Underground passengers also being targeted for their luxury garments and headphones while travelling, with crime on the network up 56 per cent in the last year.
According to David Wilson, a professor of criminology at Birmingham City University, the sudden rise in coat thefts could signal a more worrying trend.
He explained: ‘It could be the start of a new spate of luxury item muggings.
‘You may recall we’ve seen muggings of this sort before.
‘Thieves used to target Rolex watches which go for thousands of pounds and then flog them online because they’re usually stolen to order.
‘I would tell anyone wearing Canada Goose jackets to be careful and be aware of your surroundings and who’s around you.
‘You have to be vigilant for opportunists who might try to steal them.
‘But I would also tell anyone interested in buying knock-offs to use a bit of common sense.
‘Don’t buy luxury items being sold for less than half the price – help break the market.’
And it’s not just coats, as according to the Transport for London (TfL) security chief AirPod earphones and smartphones are also among the items being stolen from travellers on the Tube.
In October, a young woman filmed herself confronting a man at a train station who she claimed had ‘stolen’ her Canada Goose coat from the outside storage facility at her flat. After following the man home, she claimed he was in fact her neighbour and had stolen many other items from her in the past
After following the man home, the woman claimed she retook possession of it
And it’s not just coats, as according to the Transport for London (TfL) security chief AirPod earphones and smartphones are also among the items being stolen from travellers on the Tube
Last month, Siwan Haward revealed ‘acquisitive crime‘ including thefts and pickpocketing, was ‘driving the increase in our overall crime rate’. She added: ‘It’s a very, concerning, intimidating and frightening type of behaviour that we are seeing across the capital.’
The number of crimes committed between April and September last year across the Underground network was 10,836, compared with 6,924 in the same period in 2022.
It included an 83 per cent rise in the number of thefts recorded from 2,935 in 2022 to 5,378 in 2023. The number of robberies soared 107 per cent from 164 to 340.
According to the London Evening Standard, Ms Hayward said: ‘What is being stolen? Airpods, phones and – we are at risk of seeing an increase in robbery because of this – branded coats.
‘Canada Goose coats, some North Face – they are targeted for robbery. It’s a real concern to us because it really impacts on the safety of young people on the network.’
She claimed crime on the Tube was now returning to ‘normal’ levels having ‘plummeted’ during the pandemic.
But TfL data shows that while crime on the public transport network hit a peak in 2019, the current level is still much higher than in 2017 and 2018 – despite passengers numbers having fallen by about a fifth overall.
Ms Hayward said data showed there were 12.8 crimes per million passenger journeys, but the figure on the National Rail network was nearly double that at 22.
TfL data revealed reported offences were up 30 per cent overall across all services last year.
Services included in the TfL total were the Underground, London Overground, Docklands Light Railway, Elizabeth line, Trams, Cable Car and buses.
The figures rose from 17,160 offences within the six months reviewed last year to 22,294 in 2023.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan travels on the London Underground’s Jubilee line on August 29
The data saw Conservative mayoral candidate Susan Hall hit out at Sadiq Khan as she claimed his ‘weak leadership’ had let crime skyrocket.
Also, a survey showing results from July to September this year revealed that 32 per cent of passengers felt worried on public transport and 7 per cent of Londoners were completely or temporarily deterred from using public transport due to a worrying incident.
The most cited worrying incidents on the bus network were overcrowding, drunken passengers, and youth-related anti-social behaviour.
Incidents people worried about most on the Underground network were drunken passengers, threatening behaviour or language of others and seeing someone begging.
Women were more likely to come across drunken passengers, whereas men were more likely to encounter youth-related anti-social behaviour.
The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) said the ‘soaring crime rates come as no surprise to Tube workers who are on the frontline every day in this increasingly hostile environment’.
Speaking at the time the figures were made public, a spokesman for Mr Khan told MailOnline: ‘Everyone should feel safe on London’s transport network and it is the Mayor’s priority to ensure the transport network remains a safe and low-crime environment.
‘Working closely with the police, TfL has thousands of police officers and their own enforcement staff patrolling the network every day to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour, alongside operations to target offenders.
‘The public transport crime trends in London reflect national trends which are rising due to the lower volumes recorded during the pandemic.
‘City Hall and TfL have been actively promoting the importance of reporting crimes, especially those that are underreported such as hate crime, sexual offences and harassment and work-related violence and aggression.
‘City Hall and TfL will continue to encourage anyone who witnesses a crime on the transport network to report it, in order to take action against offenders and put measures in place to prevent this happening again.’