Officers carried pricey timepieces for two sting operations in late 2022 and 2023 in London’s South Kensington, Soho, Chelsea and Mayfair.

Metropolitan Police have used undercover “victim” officers to catch robbers attempting to steal luxury watches.

Officers carried pricey timepieces for two sting operations in late 2022 and 2023 in London’s South Kensington, Soho, Chelsea and Mayfair.

The thieves – mainly groups of men in their 20s or 30s – approached them by bars and other venues at night under false pretences, offering them drugs or directions to sex workers.

Criminals who went for the bait were seized, leading to 21 convictions so far, while the number of watch robberies in the four London boroughs last summer was half that of the previous year.

Met Commander for Intelligence Ben Russell praised the “immense professionalism and dedication” of the officers involved.

Some 29,000 watches have been reported stolen to the Met in the past five years, with one in five of those thefts involving violence.

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