James Freedman could pick your pocket on the train; in a busy station, or at one of his live West End shows. He’s on the right side of the law, but over his 20-year career as a pickpocket performer, he has been immersed in the underbelly of professional thieves. “I learned a lot of it from a career pickpocket who proudly said he’d never been arrested,” he says.
“He became one of my closest friends.” He wasn’t always a professional pickpocket . As a child, he obsessively read library books on the art of pickpocketing, eventually getting a gig as a stage performer and consultant for TV shows like Hustle .
More recently, in 2015, he was appointed the UK’s first Fraud Prevention Ambassador by the City of London Police. From protecting your “leather” (wallet) to avoiding the “mug’s pocket” (back of the jeans), Freedman knows the jargon and the secret tools used to open pockets from the outside (a coin with a tiny knife inside). Read Next I used a food bank - here's how we can solve the poverty crisis Now more than ever, Freedman’s insider knowledge is in demand.
The police and some banks have warned of a rise in the number of cases of criminals watching over someone’s shoulder as they type in their phone pin, only to shortly steal the device. One criminal gang leader said they can steal upwards of £50,000 an hour. “The number one thing to worry about is your phone because your phone is worth a few hundred quid, but the data on it is worth even more.
