Sir Jim Ratcliffe, recognized as the UK’s richest individual in 2023 by Forbes, has disclosed his reluctance to wear high-value watches in London due to a recent surge in violent thefts. The billionaire, who has a stake in Manchester United, shared his concerns with The Sunday Times, attributing his fears to a harrowing incident he witnessed near his office in Knightsbridge.
Ratcliffe recounted a chilling episode from approximately a year ago, where a gang of three armed with machetes attacked and fatally wounded a man in a bid to steal his Rolex. The crime occurred just outside his office, directly across from the renowned Harrods department store. “We saw CCTV footage of the attack,” Ratcliffe explained, noting the brutal nature of the assault that resulted in the victim’s death as he resisted the thieves.
The disturbing rise in such incidents has prompted significant responses from law enforcement. A covert investigation conducted by the Metropolitan Police last year resulted in 31 arrests and 27 successful prosecutions related to the theft of luxury watches in London’s West End. The operation revealed the modus operandi of the culprits, who often targeted individuals leaving pubs and nightclubs, exploiting their vulnerability, and using tactics such as drugging or coerced prostitution to lure victims into secluded areas for robbery.
The Metropolitan Police’s intelligence efforts have pinpointed high-risk areas, with 40% of all watch-related robberies occurring in hotspots such as Soho, Mayfair, South Kensington, and Chelsea. The police have reported a positive trend in deterring these crimes. Their initial measures from October to December 2022 led to a 28% reduction in watch thefts across the three affected boroughs, with incidents dropping from 43 in October to 31 by December.
Comparative annual statistics also indicate a decrease in such crimes, with watch robberies falling from 429 between March and October 2022 to 361 in the same period of 2023.
