Hunt for the ‘Wimbledon Prowler’
London gripped by burglar who stole goods worth £10m
LONDON // Cunning gentleman thieves have fascinated romantics from the days of Robin Hood through to Hollywood’s heyday – and now London is transfixed by the real-life dramas of the “Wimbledon Prowler”.
The prolific burglar is suspected of carrying out hundreds of break- ins around one of London’s most exclusive neighbourhoods, making off with assets worth more than £ 10 million (Dh52.3m). The upmarket neighbourhood of Wimbledon in the British capital’s smart south-west is sheltered from the hustle of city life, and known mainly for its tennis tournament and multimillion pound mansions. But residents have been panicked by the “Wimbledon Prowler”, as the criminal has been nicknamed by the British media.
In a decade of deception, the thief has committed more than 200 burglaries, making mockeries of locks, alarms and security camera systems to pilfer luxury watches, jewellery and cash, said Det Insp Dan O’Sullivan.
The intruder’s high- profile targets have included German tennis legend Boris Becker and French former Real Madrid and Arsenal footballer Nicolas Anelka, who chased the burglar from his house.
His biggest single trophy is believed to be a 1955 Rolex Submariner watch valued at about £500,000. “In the UK there is no one that gets close to him, in terms of the period of time that he’s been offending and the financial gain,” said Det Insp O’Sullivan.
“The law of averages says that you are going to make a mistake one day but we’ve never actually got close to him, which indicates he’s very good. He’s disciplined.” That the crook remained at large is not for the lack of effort, with media reporting that police have even hidden in trees in aid to catch him in the act.
Starved of solid leads, Scotland Yard last month launched an appeal for witnesses after a particularly productive period for the burglar between last September and early this year, with three to four break- ins committed per week. From the scant evidence, police believe the crook is a man aged about 35, of medium height and is described as athletic, agile, organised, disciplined and likely knowledgeable about police investigation techniques. He left no evidence such as fingerprints and was aware of the location of surveillance cameras, hiding his face with his hand.
Police have not ruled out the possibility that the hunted man could be a former soldier.
“This individual seems to be one of the 10 per cent of burglars who plan a crime,” said retired policeman Calvin Beckford, who now operates The Crime Prevention Website, the largest open-source online resource of its kind in Europe.
“This guy is clearly very cautious, is security aware and spends time making observations, minimising his chances of being detected,” he said.