London Mugging Hotspots Revealed in New Crime Map

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A new crime map from The Daily Mail has laid bare the most dangerous parts of London for muggings, with central areas like Soho, Mayfair, and the West End emerging as key hotspots amid a growing crime wave under Mayor Sadiq Khan’s watch.

Using figures released by the Metropolitan Police Service (Met), the map shows staggering numbers of violent street robberies across London’s most exclusive and tourist-heavy postcodes. In the area covering Oxford Street and Shaftesbury Avenue, a shocking 508 muggings were recorded in the year to June 2025. Neighbouring districts, including Regent Street and New Bond Street, reported a further 499 cases during the same period. The data paints a grim picture of a capital increasingly plagued by street-level thefts and gang activity.

Fitzrovia West, Leicester Square, St James’s, and Covent Garden featured prominently on the list, with hundreds of incidents reported annually. In the zone that includes Leicester Square and Covent Garden, police logged 370 robberies. Even the prestigious surroundings of Buckingham Palace and Piccadilly Circus were not spared, with 251 violent thefts recorded.

Celebrities Targeted

High-profile attacks have added to public concern. In February, Bridgerton actress Genevieve Chenneour, 27, was mugged in Kensington by a teenage repeat offender. Zacariah Boulares, 18, threatened to stab her before she bravely fought him off with help from her boyfriend. Boulares had previously robbed broadcaster Aled Jones at machete-point for a £17,000 Rolex Daytona. Despite his violent record, Boulares served just 14 months of a 24-month sentence before being released.

British TV veteran Selina Scott, 74, was also attacked this year in broad daylight near Piccadilly. She was struck behind the knee and set upon by a gang who managed to unzip her backpack and steal her purse. Scott later described the incident as traumatic, losing her bank cards, licence, and cash in the process.

Three violent offenders, dubbed the “Rolex rippers,” were recently jailed for a combined 30 years after a string of assaults in central London. Tedros Haile, Mahad Jammeh, and Christian Whittingham beat their victims in the streets of Mayfair before snatching their watches and fleeing in a getaway car.

The scale of the crisis has become impossible to ignore. MailOnline previously reported that muggings in London’s West End have tripled in two years, with figures jumping from 796 in 2021 to 2,806 in 2023. Phone thefts have become equally rampant. In 2024, 70,137 mobile phones were reported stolen in London, up 40 percent from 2023 and more than triple the number from 2020. Oxford Street topped the list, with 6,539 phones snatched last year alone.

Critics have pointed the finger at Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan, accusing him of inaction. Susan Hall, Leader of the City Hall Conservative Group, called the numbers “obscene” and warned that the planned pedestrianisation of key areas could worsen the situation. “Sadiq Khan must get a grip and put the welfare of the public first,” she told MailOnline.

Neil Garratt authored the Tackling London’s Theft Epidemic report and added: “This problem is solvable. Instead, the Mayor sits back, blaming phone companies while residents and tourists live in fear.”

While City Hall has announced a police blitz targeting robbery and anti-social behaviour in 20 town centres, many say the response has come far too late. With moped and e-bike gangs still striking at will, many Londoners are left wondering when the streets will finally feel safe again.