Latest trend in street robberies is all about cell phones

If you talk on your cell phone as you walk through town, be on the lookout for someone coming up to you and swiping your phone.

By Charles Sercombe
If you tend to talk on your cell phone as you walk around town, you might want to hold off.
In recent weeks Hamtramck police – and police nationwide — have reported a spike in the number of street robberies of high-end cell phones.
“Right now, it’s an epidemic everywhere,” said Sgt. Andrew Mileski. “People need to pay attention to their surroundings.”
Most of the incidents involve young men, some even in their teens, who come up on a person talking on their phone and snatching it, then run away, sometimes to a waiting car.
In prior years most street robberies involved yanking off gold necklaces from pedestrians.
That has just about disappeared, and is replaced with cell phone thefts. Mileski said the phones get more money than jewelry.
In some of the more brazen cases, thieves will enter a store and steal display models.
While it is possible to track where the phones go, they must remain on to do so. Mileski said thieves turn off the phones and have the information card in it erased, thus making it untraceable.
Some of the higher end phones sell for upwards of $600 new.
Mileski said there have been some arrests made, but if it involves a juvenile, they are likely to be released to their parents or parent with little legal backlash.
In some cases there are groups of thieves coordinating the thefts and in other cases it’s just a matter of an individual acting on the spur of the moment.
Thefts of cell phones are on the rise across the country, according to various media reports. Some cities are requiring dealers who sell used cell phones to register as second-hand dealers.
They are also required to get the name of the person selling it, their address and even a thumb print.
Owners of expensive cell phones are encouraged to write down the phone’s serial number and give a copy of it to the police.
In other public safety news, there have been three cases of drivers striking people on bikes. In one case a few weeks ago a man received serious head injuries.
Police warn those on bikes to be extra cautious, especially with the number of potholes throughout the city.