Pickpocketing crimes in London tube stations have doubled since 2016, though Islington represents only 4 per cent of incidents in the capital.
Statistics obtained from the British Transport Police (BTP) under the Freedom of Information Act, show 344 pickpocketing crimes at tube stations in the borough for the year 2019.
Finsbury Park emerges as the worst tube station for pickpocketing with 139 crimes recorded, almost twice as much as at Highbury and Islington, the next most affected station.
| Station | Number of pickpocketing crimes |
| Angel | 28 |
| Archway | 8 |
| Arsenal | 11 |
| Caledonian Road | 17 |
| Farringdon | 11 |
| Finsbury Park | 139 |
| Highbury and Islington | 79 |
| Holloway Road | 17 |
| Old Street | 30 |
| Tufnell Park | 4 |
Overall, 8475 pickpocketing crimes were recorded by the BTP in the London underground last year, amounting to 23 victims a day.
“To be honest, I have never witnessed any crime at this station,” says Doris, a regular commuter at Finsbury Park station.
In comparison, 509 pickpocketing crimes were recorded at Oxford Circus station, the most affected station in London. King’s Cross St Pancras and Green Park were the two next most impacted stations, with respectively 365 and 364 crimes recorded.
The figures have more than doubled since 2016, when nearly 4000 offences were recorded, and the BTP has made tackling pickpocketing one of their priorities. Nineteen members of an organised gang pickpocketing from Eastern Europe were arrested in a crackdown last summer.
Green Party co-leader and candidate for the postponed 2020 London mayoral election Siân Berry says cutbacks on community policing are responsible for the new surge in pickpocketing in the London tube.
According to her, the cutbacks have severed “the support net” that can help with catching the offenders and “picking up on worrying developments”.
“A rise in these offences shows the current Mayor is not targeting enough resources towards community policing,” she says
Siân Berry was herself the victim of a pickpocket two years ago. “It’s one of these crimes that seems small but has a big personal impact,” she said. “Victims often have items of sentimental value stolen, as well as being left without essential items like money and ID.”
A recent study led by the University of Cambridge has shown that four 15-minute police patrols per day could reduce overall criminality in tube stations by 20 per cent.
“This phantom effect suggests that crime declines when potential offenders are apprehensive about a possible police presence based on recent patrolling patterns – even when there are no police in the vicinity,” said Prof Lawrence Sherman.
