“We Will Smash You Up” Met Police Warn Illegal London E-Bike Criminals
A member of the Met Police has shared what tactics his team use to stop illegal e-bike riders, as the Met faces mounting pressure to take action.
The Met Police are upping their tactics in the fight against illegal e-bike riders, with one member of the force detailing how the Met uses its cars and bikes to carry out tactical contact takedowns.
Organised phone theft gangs using electric bikes are costing Londoners a reported £50 million, and the Met Police say they’re cracking down hard, including making tactical contact to bring suspects down.
A recent investigation has exposed the scale of the city’s phone-snatching epidemic, with many thieves riding e-bikes to snatch phones straight from people’s hands.
“These criminals operate in packs,” one officer told the press. “They’re fast, agile, and often use electric bikes to blend in with traffic and disappear in seconds.”
Once stolen, phones are stripped for parts, sold abroad, or funnelled into international organised crime groups. The thefts often take place in broad daylight, targeting pedestrians using phones in public, particularly around transport hubs and tourist-heavy areas.
The Metropolitan Police have ramped up enforcement, with increased high-visibility patrols, plain-clothes units, and intelligence-led raids on “handlers” - who are the people who buy and move the stolen goods.
Tactical contact (a controversial yet effective method involving police vehicles making controlled contact to stop suspects) is being used in certain high-risk scenarios. “Where it’s safe to do so, we are making tactical contact,” the officer confirmed. “We’re targeting the criminals, not law-abiding e-bike riders, but if someone’s fleeing after a violent theft, we’re not just letting them go.”
Riders commuting in and around London are being urged to stay alert. While motorcyclists aren’t the primary targets, they’re often sharing the road with suspects using e-bikes and mopeds to flee crime scenes. The Met also continues to push for mobile manufacturers to make handsets harder to wipe and resell, reducing the incentive at the source.
“Keep your device out of sight, lock it down with tracking software, and report thefts immediately,” the officer added. “Everyone has a part to play in tackling this.”
You may also like to read this article covering what to do if somebody tries to bikejack you.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
