This is the moment a suspected thief brazenly stole an influencer’s suitcase outside London St Pancras station.
Colleen Bankston’s bag was apparently pinched by the man as she turned her back for a split second while packing luggage into the boot of a taxi on Sunday morning.
Footage shows a man, wearing headphones and a baseball cap, looking around to see if anyone is watching before subtly bending down to grab the suitcase and walking off with it.
Ms Bankston, an influencer and personal trainer, appears none the wiser as she faces the boot of the taxi, the bag having been just behind her.
The thief then hides the suitcase by holding it close to his chest, before disappearing through the station entrance.
The video, which was taken by a man nearby who said he recognised the suspected thief, was posted on social media by Ms Bankston.
Captioning the clip, she wrote: ‘Get this guy who stole my bag before he gets someone else or worse, takes a child.’
Reacting to the video, one viewer wrote: ‘He has definitely done this before… He is a pro. […] I bet he has stolen countless bags from tourists.’
Footage shows a man bending down to pick up the suitcase while its owner has her back turned
He then begins walking off with the bag, clutching it to his chest so it is less visible
The suspected thief, wearing headphones and a baseball cap, walks quickly along the outside of the station before turning into the entrance
Another said: ‘Happened two weeks ago to my friend at St Pancras.’
The suspect looked smart in a white polo shirt, blue suit trousers, a black rucksack and glasses.
A spokesperson for British Transport Police said: ‘Officers are aware of a video showing a man taking a suitcase from outside St Pancras International railway station on Sunday (30 August).
‘Enquiries are ongoing, and anyone with information is asked to contact British Transport Police by texting 61016, quoting reference 447 of 1 September.’
Last month, an Algerian migrant who stole a suitcase containing jewellery worth up to £175,000 outside St Pancras by telling his victim her trousers were dirty was jailed.
Jumama Zaida had just come out of the station in April after she arrived on the Eurostar from Paris when an accomplice told her she had a stain on her clothing and offered her a tissue in a bid to distract her.
As she wiped her trousers, Bilal Arbaoui, 32, then used the opportunity to steal Ms Zaida’s gold Rimowa case, which can cost upwards of £1,000.
She quickly noticed the luggage had been taken and saw Arbaoui running away with it, before notifying police.
Assisted by an Arabic interpreter, Arbaoui appeared at Inner London Crown Court this month and was jailed for 22 months after he pleaded guilty to theft, despite initially denying it was him in CCTV images.
Arbaoui, of Neasden, northwest London, has two previous convictions for similar bag thefts since he arrived in the UK in 2024.
An Algerian migrant who stole a suitcase containing jewellery worth up to £175,000 by telling his victim her trousers were dirty was jailed last month
At the same station in June, classical musician Peter Facer had his oboe stolen
At the same station in June, a classical musician was also targeted in another cruel ‘distraction theft’.
Peter Facer, 38, had his oboe stolen by crooks when he was travelling back from his former woodwind teacher’s retirement party in London on June 14.
The oboist was leaning against railings outside the station entrance when the thieves struck.
Mr Facer was carrying a coffee and two bags, one containing his rare oboe d’amore while the other contained his clothes and a pair of Apple AirPods.
One of the crooks pretended to ask for directions to Euston station while his accomplice stole the ‘sentimental’ instrument.
The young man walked away after Mr Facer repeated instructions to get to Euston as the thief claimed to have limited English.
The classical musician was ‘just trying to be helpful’ – but when he looked down, his possessions, including his cherished woodwind instrument, had vanished.
The Met Police told the Daily Mail at the time ‘it appears to be a theft not involving violence which means we are unable to provide a comment in this instance’.
