Tuesday, April 8, 2014

VIDEO The Laptop Thieves of San Francisco

Back in 2009 (SEE: They Have Lost Their Minds in San Francisco), I reported on a warning a Starbucks employee gave:
 This morning I am in a Starbucks near the Palace Hotel, sipping some green tea. One of the Starbucks' employees comes up to me and says, "Be very careful with your laptop, don't even leave it unguarded for a second."
Apparently, the warning still holds SFC reports:
 A brazen, latte-drinking thief made off with the laptop and phone of an unsuspecting woman from a cafe in the Lower Nob Hill neighborhood Friday afternoon, and the whole ordeal was caught on surveillance video.

As the video gets rolling, the soon-to-be thief, who apparently decided to dress in prison-style stripes for the caper, can be seen entering the coffee shop on the 600 block of Post Street, placing her sunglasses on her head and casually ordering a drink. Around the 1:30 mark, the thief takes a seat and appears to start casing her victim, who is working on her computer along the left wall of the coffee shop.

A few seconds later, the thief is shown asking another patron to watch her purse while she goes to the bathroom — because the world is a dangerous place and you never can be too trusting.

The thief then makes use of the facilities and returns to continue scoping the place. Around the 2:00 mark, the victim gets up to use the bathroom and our thief sees her chance. She stands up and does the don’t-mind-me-I’m-just-stretching routine while making sure no one is watching.

Seeing that the coast is clear, she bundles up the computer and phone of the victim and quickly exits the cafe...

Police said Monday that they are investigating the theft, but no arrests have been made.

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