Man falls victim to ‘distraction theft’ on ‘most dangerous street’
A man fell victim to a ‘distraction theft’ on a street considered the ‘most dangerous’ in the Black Country. West Midlands Police[1] say the man had “money stolen” after someone distracted him by “asking for directions”.
The incident occurred on West Bromwich’s High Street, which is considered the region’s most dangerous road according to crime stats analysed by BirminghamLive. West Midlands Police say the theft took place on Thursday, January 26, at 11.30am.
The force has issued a photograph of two people in connection with the incident. A spokesperson for the force said: “Do you know these two?
“We want to speak to them after a man found he’d had money stolen after being distracted by someone asking for directions in High Street, West Bromwich, at 11.30am on Thursday, January 26. Contact us via Live Chat or call 101 quoting 20/69892/23.”
Residents previously told BirminghamLive how they fear walking down the road[3]. Tarlok Nath, aged 57, from West Bromwich, raised concerns about state of the pavements and recalled being ‘slapped by a passing cyclist’. Meanwhile, Jo Bradley, 50, from West Bromwich, said she was ‘worried about having her phone stolen’ when walking down the road. .
Among the crimes[4] which have taken place in the area include sex attacks, robberies, drug deals and fights. In November last year, there were 40 crimes recorded along St Michael Street and High Street, and another 18 on nearby New Street.
Some 26 of those were listed as violent or sexual offences. And in December, a man suffered a fractured skull after being knocked to the ground during a vicious attack[5] on High Street.
Back in 2020, eight people were arrested on the same street following a full-scale brawl[6] involving machetes. Anyone with information about crimes which have taken place are asked to call 101.
References
- ^ West Midlands Police (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ We visited the ‘most dangerous street’ so violent it’s a ‘no-go zone’ at night (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ fear walking down the road (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ the crimes (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ vicious attack (www.birminghammail.co.uk)
- ^ full-scale brawl (www.birminghammail.co.uk)