Serial thieves jailed after bag-swapping spree at London pubs

Two serial thieves have been jailed after targeting London pubs for rucksacks and laptops belonging to unsuspecting punters.

Daniel Ramzi, 26, and Abderrahim Mamma, 29, were captured on CCTV leaning over a pub barrier in Leadenhall Market to reach a man's rucksack. The pair struck at the pub on January 15, then went through the bag before removing a laptop. They placed the bag back on the floor and left the pub. Earlier in the day, Ramzi and Mamma stole a mobile phone from a coat pocket at a fast-food restaurant on Bishopsgate. They also stole another laptop from inside a bag at a licensed premises on Gracechurch Street on the same day. Six days later, the pair went into a pub on Old Broad Street, where Ramzi slid a bag out from a pile and replaced it with a different bag. They then approached another group and carried out another bag swap before leaving.

Mamma, who also pleaded guilty to an additional seven theft offences outside the City, was sentenced at Inner London Crown Court to 20 months in prison. Ramzi, who has no fixed abode, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court to 14 months in prison. The pair, both of no fixed abode, have pleaded guilty to four counts of theft each.

Mamma was also handed a Criminal Behaviour Order banning him from entering the City of London for five years. The sentences come after the two men were identified as persistent offenders by investigators.

Sergeant James Wood, of the Proactive Acquisitive Crime Team at the City of London Police, said: