Phone Thief Arrested after Live Streaming His Face to Thousands
- An Egyptian journalist’s phone was snatched by a thief on a motorbike while reporting
- Unknown to the thief, the phone was live streaming, and his face was seen by thousands
- Authorities traced and arrested him, and he confessed to the crime
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It seems motorcycle thieves grabbing phones from unsuspecting victims is not unique to Kenya.
Source: UGC
A thief has been arrested after broadcasting himself live with a phone he had stolen.
BBC reports that the man unknowingly showed his face to thousands on Tuesday, October 19, after snatching a journalist’s phone while live streaming.
The thief, on a motorbike, was seen casually smoking a cigarette as he sped away with the phone belonging to Mahmoud Ragheb.
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According to Ragheb's employer, Youm7, the incident happened on a bridge in Shubra Al-Khaimah, the country’s fourth-largest city.
Snatch, arrest
Ragheb was reporting on the effects of an earthquake when the unnamed thief snatched the phone.
When the camera stopped shaking, it showed the thief’s face as he rode away with a cigarette in his mouth.
When the theft occurred, more than 20,000 Facebook were live-streaming it, and it has since garnered over 7.2 million views and 47,000 comments.
The video was widely shared, and authorities managed to track down the thief. Egypt’s Ministry of the Interior announced that the man was apprehended hours later at his home.
He confessed to his crimes while in police custody.
Reactions
Netizens reacted to the video by stating:
Sameh Safwa:
“Thank God the motorcycle will return to its owners.”
Saeid Kamal:
“The important thing is that he was arrested. Very many people have been stolen from in this manner.”
Shimaa Abdelazez:
“Oh, oh, you're live!”
Gogo Badr:
“This is a thief who has skills. He can ride, smoke cigarettes and steal phones.”
Facebook photo exposes suspect
In other news, YEN.com.gh reported that a young man has been compelled to display his dance prowess after he was allegedly caught stealing by residents in a Ghanaian community.
In a video widely circulating on social media, the young man, whose name is unknown, could be seen dancing as the faceless residents provided him with a beat to display.
According to reports, the alleged thief was offered malt by the residents before compelling him to dance.
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