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The lost art of pickpockets

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Re: The lost art of pickpockets

#31

Post by christkv »

Barcelona is damn bad for pickpocketing so watch yourself if you are in town and look around you for potential thieves. Be especially vary of people who are very nicely dresses as it's a normal rouse to dress sharply so you have your guard down. Also a jacket casually over the arm can be a sign that they are looking for quick dives into open handbags etc. I usually just assume an agressive posture and look around. If you don't look like an easy mark or more like someone who could potentially fight back they will target someone else.

Being Spanish and living here for the last 3 years I have never been pickpocketed or robbed but know a lot of people that it has happened to and especially people visiting.

So if you come to Barcelona, always walk with your wallet in the front pocket, carry a bag in front of you on escalators or on the metro and if you are, two keep an eye on each others back and you won't have to run to the consulate for a new passport and deal with canceling all your cards.

Re: The lost art of pickpockets

#32

Post by throwawayadvice »

jmah wrote: post #25
harold wrote: post #13

Back in '08 or so I was at Disneyland. A woman bumped in to me after getting off the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Then she bumped into me again at the turnstyle going out where people back up a bit. I remember thinking she was rude. When I got outside, a person mentioned my wallet was about to fall out of my back pocket. Never having my wallet fall out like that, before or since, I've always wondered if the rude la…

It sounds like she grabbed you wallet, took (or planted) whatever, and then put it back...

I can imagine her taking cash but what would she plant?

Re: The lost art of pickpockets

#33

Post by kirubakaran »

sp_ wrote: post #4
there wrote: post #2

i bet the proliferation of skinny jeans is to blame. the person wearing the jeans can barely get their own hand in their pocket, how's a pickpocket supposed to do it undetected?

I can confirm this first hand. Two pickpockets tried to get my stuff in Barcelona. One had his hand in my left pocket with my cell phone, the other one in the right pocket with my wallet and passport. Sorry, folks, but my jeans pockets are like monkey traps. If you grab anything in there you won't be able to get your hand out. They pickpockets figured that out quickly and ran off without any loot. Tight jeans saved m…

Gradual castration victim or easy pickpocket victim? Tradeoffs, tradeoffs...

Re: The lost art of pickpockets

#34

Post by mey »

mgkimsal wrote: post #26
kenjackson wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One time they bought a plane ticket online for $350. I assume this one get caught?

Don't assume anything. I had someone steal my card info and use it to by a bed and mattress, which was delivered to their house. Sears (ahem) wouldn't tell me who bought it, or where it was delivered, because I wasn't the purchaser, but they were happy to charge me for it. I turned it over to the police, but they said they weren't going to deal with it as it was 'only' ~$1200. This was in 2002 IIRC.

When such a thing happens, initiate a chargeback through your bank. Additionally federal (US) regulations limit your out of pocket expenses of fraud to $50.

Re: The lost art of pickpockets

#35

Post by btilly »

there wrote: post #2

i bet the proliferation of skinny jeans is to blame. the person wearing the jeans can barely get their own hand in their pocket, how's a pickpocket supposed to do it undetected?

I disbelieve. My brother learned to pick-pocket for giggles and grins. And I've seem him demonstrate the skill. Tight jeans is not a challenge as long as the target's attention is elsewhere.

Re: The lost art of pickpockets

#38

Post by damoncali »

shazow wrote: post #30

Luckily there's no shortage of other creative thefts in much of Europe. Here's a story how my girlfriend and travel partner got covered in sludge as part of an elaborate diversion to steal her backpack with over $2,000 worth of stuff. http://shazow.posterous.com/find-yourself-covered-in-slime-y... Think this is worth posting to HN as a submission?

That exact method was used on a friend of mine in Spain not too long ago. She was walking down the street, found herself covered in something that seemed like vomit, and then being assisted by Spanish "gentlemen". A minute later, she had no purse, no passport, no money, and no phone. Ouch.

Distressingly clever distraction, I would say.

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