A SHOCKING video shows the moment that a child appears to steal a phone belonging to a coffee shop worker in an apparent scam led by his mum.
The incident occurred in a coffee shop in Lewisham, south east London yesterday after the mother of the child seemingly distracted a worker and her colleague by asking for change.
The distraction allows the child to sneak over and swipe the mobile, before the pair quickly make their exit from the shop with the staff oblivious to what has happened right beneath their noses.
As the clip begins, the mum stands with the child at the counter of the coffee shop chatting to a member of staff.
The staff member appears to be counting notes out for the woman who keeps her distracted by seemingly giving more change and questioning the amount she is receiving.
The woman then takes the notes in her hand before gesturing around the coffee shop seemingly trying to keep the server distracted.
As the woman continues to haggle over two cans of juice, she moves towards the two coffee shop workers and points behind them to a display case of baked goods.
The duo looks away as the small child, dressed in a blue coat, sneakily creeps up to the counter and quickly slips the phone off the worktop in a blink-and-you-miss-it moment.
He then moves away from the counter and unzips a bag around his waist, trying to slip the phone inside without being caught.
His mum, apparently aware of his successful theft, quickly gives up her exchange with the workers and places a hand on the back of her son’s head, guiding him out of the shop with their ill-gotten gains.
The video was shared on social media yesterday with the caption: “This happened today in Lewisham, change scammers and little one stealing the phone.”
The post received hundreds of likes with dozens of people left astounded by the actions of the youngster and his mum.
One said: “Outrageous really but Romanians in London use children all the time, sad that children are being taught this at such a young age.”
Another added: “That poor child. Wow.”
A third replied: “That’s outrageous.”
Another commented: “Madness out there at that age.”
Over 90,000 phones were stolen last year in London according to data from the Met Police, equating to over 250 phones per day.
