Undercover police floor London phone snatcher mid-theft

Undercover police officers in London tackled a mobile phone snatcher to the ground as he was mid-theft near Oxford Circus in August, newly-released footage shows.

In the video, Sofian Hadar, 23, of Cricklewood Broadway, follows an unsuspecting tourist and tries to remove a mobile phone from his pocket.

Two Metropolitan Police officers, who were proactively looking for thieves, then apprehend him.

The victim, a heart surgeon on holiday from Egypt, had his phone returned to him.

Hadar pleaded guilty to theft and was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court to 11 months in prison on Thursday, 7 November.