Video: Four thieves steal Yamaha R1 in broad daylight

A gang of four men were filmed stealing a Yamaha R1 in the middle of the day as shocked members of the public stood and watched.

Believed to have happened in Berkeley Square, central London, the thieves, dressed all in black travelling on what appears to be a Yamaha XMax scooter and Triumph Street Triple, picked out the red R1 from a selection of parked bikes.

When the video starts there appears to be an angle grinder in front of the Yamaha, which the thieves take with them, suggesting a lock of some sort had to be cut from the bike.

Devastating to watch, it only takes two of the thieves a matter of seconds to break the steering lock before they were off.

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Last year, a similar video was posted in December, which showed thieves attempting to steal a Ducati 1199S Panigale in central London.

Despite brandishing hammers and angle grinders and threatening passers-by, the thieves were forced to dump the Ducati after they were chased by members of the public.

In another instance, and some hope for bike owners, six men were arrested in March 2016 in connection with the theft of new and classic motorcycles worth £100,000 from Padgett’s Motorcycles in Batley, Yorkshire.

London bike theft rises

Crime involving mopeds has gone up by more than 600% in London in the past two years, with Scotland Yard statistics showing there have been 7,668 crimes involving mopeds to date in 2016 – up from 1,053 in 2014 and 4,647 in 2015.

With the rise reportedly due to teenagers stealing mopeds, the Met said the rise was a “huge concern” but denied that the problem is “out of control”.

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