Woman steals iPhone and tries to escape by stripping in the street

Screengrab via Apple Daily video.
Screengrab via Apple Daily video.

In a rare and revealing robbery tactic, a woman accused of pocketing someone else’s iPhone tried to shake off several pursuers by stripping down to her underwear in the street and threatening to scream about sexual assault.

According to Apple Daily, the woman, a 45-year-old Vietnamese national, snatched the device and bolted about 4pm yesterday, sparking a chase outside the Hong Kong Industrial Centre in Cheung Sha Wan.

Pursued by six or seven people, the alleged thief first attempted to evade her captors by hiding under a car, according to an eye witness surnamed Ng, who saw the drama unfold while shopping at the center.

Discovered and dragged out of her hiding place, the woman then decided to switch tack.

As another woman yelled “don’t let her get away with my phone”, the alleged pilferer promptly started shedding clothes before turning to the group and threatening to accuse them of sexual assault, Ng told the outlet.

With the group refusing to give up its chase, the woman, at that point in only her underwear, made for the middle of the road — no doubt turning heads in traffic — before heading back into the Hong Kong Industrial Center, where a mall security guard put a stop to the madness.

Police arrived shortly afterwards and, after an initial investigation, found in her possession a handbag containing an iPhone worth HK$8,000 (US$1,025) belonging to a 35-year-old woman surnamed Yuen.

The suspect, however, denied stealing the phone and says that she was assaulted by the group, the newspaper reports.

As rare as the snatch and strip tactic might seem, it’s not unprecedented.

In March, a 30-year-old woman in Hunan stripped naked after a mob of people yelling “catch the thief” ran after her.

She, also, failed to escape.



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