In recent years, crime rates have been rapidly increasing, reaching a peak, especially after the pandemic. The boldness and ruthlessness of criminals are also accompanying this rise. I have been regularly visiting London for about 15 years, and I lived here for a few years. During this time, one thing has caught my attention: Crime rates, especially theft, robbery, knife attacks, and drug dealing, are skyrocketing.
According to 2023 police data, a phone was stolen every 6 minutes in London. This year, that number has likely increased even further. While we don’t have annual data yet, it’s highly probable that now a phone is stolen every 4 minutes.
London is becoming a more unsafe city with each passing year. Even though it’s considered one of the capitals of the world economy, it’s not easy to walk around London without feeling uneasy anymore. It’s quite possible to see people shoplifting in stores. Or in the very heart of London, in broad daylight, you might witness a migrant attacking a mother and her daughter with a knife. Unfortunately, just a few days ago in Leicester Square, an 11-year-old girl was stabbed in a crowded square by a Romanian man. Or two weeks ago, in one of the busiest train stations, a mother waiting with her children was attacked by a group of people who stole her valuable watch. A week ago, in the same place, a young girl underage had a knife pulled on her, and her phone was forcibly taken… And just two days ago, a 28-year-old man was caught after stealing 24 phones while on a bike…
These are just incidents from the past two weeks that I picked out. Today, I saw Simon Cowell’s statement in the newspaper: “I’m putting my million-dollar house in Holland Park up for sale because we can no longer live in fear of being robbed with my family.”
Everyone, from 7 to 70, is living in fear. Those born and raised in London are uneasy, as are the celebrities who moved here from other cities to start a family.
Last Sunday, my phone was stolen by an Eastern European migrant girl. While I was reading the newspaper in one of London’s supposedly safe parks, this girl, pretending to be a beggar and mute, stole my phone by hiding it behind a piece of paper filled with meaningless letters that she placed over it on the grass. However, the interesting thing was that instead of running away after stealing, the thief calmly approached someone nearby and asked for money from them as well. She even tried to steal their phone. I was focused on my newspaper instead of watching the event, and when I realized my phone was gone, I asked the other person and understood the situation… But it was too late. The thief might have been nearby, but there was a very high chance she was carrying a knife. Perhaps my late realization saved me from being stabbed.
The thief’s bold and calm demeanor was striking. Despite stealing my phone, she wasn’t satisfied and wanted to steal the phones of the people around her too. She must have noticed that I was so engrossed in the newspaper that I couldn’t realize my phone was gone. If she wasn’t aware, this was a brazen kind of complacency. Because if I had been someone who frequently checks their phone, I would have realized what happened as soon as the girl left. Maybe she would have been caught. However, she continued to calmly pretend to be a beggar. She never ran away…
After this theft, my happy life in London seems to have been engulfed in a cloud of fog. I realized that the thefts and attacks reported in the newspapers every day were not just mere news.
David and Victoria Beckham are reducing their fears by placing security guards in front of their home. Simon Cowell, on the other hand, is changing cities…
So, what should those who can’t afford to hire security or move to another city do?
In London, you need to be constantly on alert and careful. Those with nomophobia (fear of being without a phone) shouldn’t walk the streets with their phones in their hands; bike-riding thieves can appear at any moment.
And it’s worth realizing that Europe is not safer than Turkey. Despite those who label Turkey as part of the Middle East, are there people here who feel much safer in Turkey than in Europe?
Gündem / Agenda 