Modern Vespa

http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crime/hampstead-moped-gang-caught-on-cctv-attacking-resident-with-a-hammer-9393344.html

In Hampstead. Apparently stole the guys' £60k Ferrari watch.

Anyone lost a BV or GTS?

It's quite shocking really...let's hope they're caught, soon.

WoW. Man it's sure gotten bad over there. To bad you have a helmet law. You can't tell who they are with all that gear. Be safe everyone.

This really pisses me off...





Why can't they call it a damned scooter!

Maybe it's a UK Rogues' Special - the Piaggio Beverly 50 and Vespa GTS 50....

All they need to do is trace the registration numbers and go bust them! Oh wait, I'm going with them being stolen scooters....doh!

Looks like the camera caught the plates. Hopefully the scooters weren't stolen too.

I see what you did there

Must assume the scoots were stolen since the tag numbers were visible. Or, they were awfully stupid.

The GTS plate is V703 HLC.

That's not a valid plate for a Piaggio scooter of any variety. I searched the DVLA online vehicle enquiry.

oops

Graham

I think powerfull piaggio's make people violent and greedy. And the newspapers will always call them mopeds when there is a crime involved.

This stuff is nothing new in London this has been going on for years now, with thefts and robberies on scooters.

As for the scooters they are always stolen with just copied or made up false plates just thrown on, they always go for Vespa/piaggio scooters mainly 250's or 300's or even the Bev 350's now they are out.

300 gts's get stolen all day long in London, I see boys all the time riding around on stolen GTS's or in little groups riding around looking in motorcycle bays looking for them, the problem is that the standard vespa/piaggio immobiliser system is rubbish and the scooters can be stolen easy.

im glad i live inthe states, and thats not going to happen tpo me. attackingwith a hammer qualifies as a deadly weapon and there fore i would ba afraid for my life and thus able to defend myself. plus there is the mistrust factor i would not trust folks like that and thus be hyper aware.
sorry for that gentleman though

Thank you for the self moderation jeepmandan.

Thank you for deleting if from your quote of jeepandan's post louswheel.

Not a big surprise, the violent crime rate in England has been rising pretty constantly since the late 90's.

In many instances the rates are up by between 40% - 50%. Even though statistics are manipulated and crimes are re-categorized to make it seem that the opposite is true.

See above, that's complete bollocks.

The crime rate is actually falling in the UK. I should know, I live there.

Bill x

But you are a glass half full kinda guy Birreh.

You're welcome my friend. I realized it was wrong after the post. I value the forum too much to get banned

I appreciate Graham's help as well.

D

Here's a Telegraph article entitled;
"The True Scale of Violent Crime Rise Revealed"

The video at the beginning shows what the media is telling it's viewers. "Burglary is down by 43%". HAHA

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/law-and-order/7400372/True-scale-of-violent-crime-rise-revealed.html

Yeah, brilliant. A gang commits a dozen burglaries and it's recorded as ONE crime. That'll cook the numbers. I guess the danger is that tourism could take a hit if the word actually got out.

No' I just don't like someone who either doesn't come from here nor live here saying things that are factually incorrect.

Sure there will always be well publicised incidents which will imply that it happens all day every day but it simply doesn't.

And this is why we read the Daily Mail - wha ha ha ha

Bill x

Well at least he can keep warm during the robbery with his tucano apron... Just kidding. It's sad seeing people do anything bad.

Let us not get all Fox news on this. It's not like this is some typical event here.

I suppose this is more newsworthy because it is Hampstead, rather than Romford.

That said I have managed to live here all my life without being threatened, or assaulted and I don't live in fear of it either. The stuff I managed to have stolen... well theft is the English vice.

If any of you cross the ponders are brave enough to visit in this violent crime ridden hell hole I would just advise you to take care of your possessions.

Also, the Daily Telegraph ran three contradictory articles on this point within two days. One said there was a rise, one said it was falling, and the final article said that it foresaw the end of violent crime.

Media. Dontchajustloveem?

It's just that you could see who they were easier. I'm assuming the plates won't help. Sorry but I didn't mean it in the way it's being taken

And here I was thinking it was only the American media who referred to scooters as mopeds.

If crimes like that happened all the time, it wouldn't be news. I do hope the bastards are caught though.

Also will say this could happen anywhere not just the UK. Can't remember where they lived, US probably but remember the moped gangs who were robbing people? People were then afraid of moped riders. Just wouldn't want anybody scared of all the geared riders over there who are great law abiding people. Damn 1%. Mods if anything I've said is controversial just erase it

I think you're fine. Someone else quoted you then posted a comment that's against the rules, which has since been deleted. I think that caused some confusion.

no worries you folks in europe dont plan on crossing the pond,very happy here in the states. doplan on trying to leave the state of md. getting too liberal and when they tried to tax teh rain...luckly for me i can go south back to the real world.

Of course they are using stolen scooter with possibly not matching plates as they are not stupid!

The jewellery gangs very often uses Vespas which are abandoned after the getaway. The fact that you need a chipped key to start them is possibly the least of the problems for those criminals.
That is scary

I hope no one took offense to my posts. I did a little research last year about how college campuses in the US under-report crimes in order to give potential students a false sense of security. One of the parallels I noticed were between these schools and places where tourism is a major source of revenue.
I also have numerous friends and family who live in (or frequently visit) England and hear their takes on the local politics and news from time to time. I remember there was an epidemic of purse snatchings in Vietnam a while back. Two riders on a moped would zoom by with the passenger snagging a purse. Luckily most purses are built flimsy enough that their strap will give rather than have the victim dragged off by the speeding bad guys.

Some friends of mine were traveling there and had a messenger bag. Turns out my friends were walking arm in arm and when the "would be" thieves struck, the passenger fell off the moped. True story.

Jrstone, I thought the same thing!

Two things come to mind:
1. Don't wear a 60K pound rare watch to sweep my driveway; that's why Dog made the Help.
2. This is a common tactic in other countries with high volume of PTWs. If you're the pedestrian walking on the sidewalk, carry your purse on the sidewalk-side of your body, and not on the street-side. I've also seen vehicle passengers get stuff ripped from their hands (rings, bracelets, watches) by pedestrian robbers, because they had their windows down and hands hanging out.

Well who could threaten you really. I mean really?

new scam in my area. butt heads pugt a piece of paper on your rear window, when you get out to check it they try to car jack you. so folks be aware , and remember your surroundings always. the friggen paper will wait.

Hey at least the hooligans have good taste in scooters... A GTS and a BV350.
Very brazen fellows, though they hide behind the anonymity of their protective gear.

I got a good chuckle at the mopeds, as well as crash helmets phrasing... Oh ignorant and naive media.

It might be quite difficult in practice.

Only pulling your leg Judy, i was totally disoffended

Where there is a high population the crime rate is most likely going to be a higher.

Plenty of people who live in London go about living happy lives never disrupted by the ongoing crime around them. My other half lives near Ilford and his next door neighbor is constantly getting burgled but they never touch his house!

It could happen anywhere, let's just hope it doesn't happen to any of us. Peace & Love man

Crime is going down in London
I know.
It's my job
Don't believe everything you read in the papers about figure fiddling