"I Lost £300" - Westminster Bridge Cup Scammers
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- I'm posting this to raise awareness of these scams and that you'll lose money if you have dealings with these.
These groups and the three ice creams parked in a dangerous position on Westminster Bridge really do need more police attention.
One of oldest scams in the word, it's mind bogging that anyone in 2023 would fall for it.
This doesn't surprise me at all. The majority of people fell for something much worse in 2020.
@archiecraig it's quite unbelievable how stupid and gullible some people are 🙈
@@cyclingSausageIndeed!😂😂😂😂
we don’t even know how many genders there are so ofcourse
same for the man selling goods out of a van, expensive legit perfume £20 a bottle dead cheap! get home its only wolf piss.
The disappointing thing is, the police practically allow this to happen. Going over Westminster Bridge nowadays, it's almost a guarantee you'll find these scammers, so you'd think they'd be easy catches for the police, but it's rare they seem to bother intervening.
... they haven't yet wised up to the fact it's a scam - still awaiting the memo from Sir Mark Rowley ...😉
Sir Dick Khan gets 20% of the take ( too offset all his losses )
Worrying , isn't it ....
suggestion, write a letter to your local MP, tell them you'd support more tougher laws for anti social behavior like this, with custodial sentences.
The biggest scammers are all IN Westminster
Give it another 10 years. London England will have MORE SCAMMERS than Delhi, India or Mumbai India.
Trust me.
We're already catching up lol
Londonstan! Zindabad! lol
How exactly do you expect police to deal with such minor infractions when they're underfunded, over-worked, there have been massive police cuts, and nearly half of London is an immigrant. Good luck with that!
I "love" these guys. If you stand and film them quietly, one of their crew members will typically walk up and make gestures at you to go away, but once you start getting loud, they all run away like startled chicken.
No they don't.
Stupid people get scammed, been going on for years
I remember seeing this scam being done in Oxford Street (London) when I was a toddler about 70 years ago. They would post two people either side to watch out for the police. It amazes me that people still fall for it.
I'm 52 & a Brightonian. When we'd have a day out tolondon as teens they would also sell the fake gold that turned green as my pal found out. Another one was fake aftershaves, both were out a suitcase 😂
I was astonished last time I crossed that bridge to see people actually falling for this scam which has been around for centuries 😢
Theyre mostly plants, theyre playing to intentionally lose to entice other people in! Scumbags.
People will fall for anything. The last few years have proved that beyond all doubt.
@chrish1657 yes.
I know some people actually believed the BBC bias and voted 🗳️ remain !
@@lucaschapman2188 Mikey is an 'immigrant'. You got a problem with that too? Brexit has been an absolute disaster for STEM, finance and our borders. It's also that much harder for young Brits who want to travel. It has made us the laughing stock of the entire world you foolish little Englander.
As Nicolas Cage said ''There is only two people I trust, one of them is me and the other isn't you'' .
All of them should be deported.
Hear, hear! Get this scum out of our country pronto!! 😠🛫
It’s too late, we are in trouble
all come from romania..👊🏻🤬
You should be deported!
police getting paid by them, otherwise they would be gone long time ago
It takes putting up a few signs (in a place that they're not easily tampered with) to inform people and stop this. If the same little guy is back doing this 2 weeks later, it's not gonna get solved.
Most of the crowd around them you spoke to are the scammers friends hyping up the punters with their 'fake' wins
!
All about illusion
He how did he not realise that. It’s obvious who is else is in the scam
@@PastaSauce. Waste of time finding out who is the mark. Just warn anyone out loud, even thouse in on it and job done.
They operate at oxford street too.
People like you deserve a medal people will be aware now. Thank you for being a good person.
Very naughty from these people, you are absolutely correct there Mikey. The police need to really keep their eyes peeled up for criminals like these guys. Hats off to you 👏
Police are probably getting their cut.
Too much effort for the police and not enough pork sandwich shops to attract them
The police are a broken force i am sorry to say.
I hate it when scammers come to scam visitors in my country🇬🇧
Lol! Police, they're to busy doing nothing 😂
I was on Westminster Bridge yesterday, January 14, 2024. Same scenario as you showed in the video. Groups of scammers, barely couple hundred yards away from each other, with same mechanisms. Funny bit even the hot dog vendors were there. It made me laugh because I'm street wise and I know how these scams work, but it also made me wince as I did not expect it to be so blatant. Great to see them go when you start filming them, too.
If only the police knew where they operated! they are so elusive
Inspector Cleuseau would solve this
Im from the UK, and even we dont know where our police are.
🤣😁
The police dont care. Illegals arent they. Untouchable.
😂
The fact there’s about 20 of them dotted around is quite scary
Another part of this scam is the other members of the crew will keep their eye out for soft targets with easily accessible valuables who stand around watching entranced and wondering who on earth would fall for this obvious scam. Also I've no doubt the cameras on the bridge can see the vendors/scammers and the police just don't care about it enough to stop it.
I remember these as a nipper early seventies and many police chases on foot as the old bill would steam in lol Its a two fold thing too as usually whilst one does the find the lady/cup thing several others are dipping their hands into handbags and pockets.
Cycling Mikey has the heart of Lion! What a diamond of a human-being. The World needs more people like this.
i agree
There are lots of people like Cycling Mikey; we already exist. All we have to do is make our presence felt; doing "Gandalf Corner" is entirely optional though.
Fair play exposing these thieves, but have you seen his vids harassing drivers? He's an absolute nause!
@@travismcfern9671 Those are the videos I like best. Entitled dangerous drivers being called out for breaking the law and putting others at risk. You're not one of them sorts of drivers are you?
@buildbright yes, sometimes I am one of those drivers you were referring to. It is impossible to obey all driving rules and regulations at all times. Occasionally rules will be broken and we don't need a rat with a video recorder in our face harassing us
All the fancy bags, watches, and phones they dont look in despair, and when you think we could be letting people in real need into this country.
There needs to be more public announcements and signs on the bridge to warn people not to engage in this scam
Just waiting for Del & Rodney to show up in a 3 wheeled van selling unicorns.
Can’t believe anyone bets against these people
Hi Mikey, It's great to see you involved in other areas to ward off street crime. Where are the police? Most of the people participating are unfortunately part of the syndicate. Keep up the good work..😊
The police are too busy investigating auditors
Well done young man . Doing the job of the police , but not getting paid for it .
The biggest part of the scam is the other gamg members pickpocketing the inlookers who are distracted by the game
Good work Mickey, I don't like these scammers. Need to rid the streets of them
The police could stop this instantly if they wished.
You can tell these scammers from a mile off! With their tacky fake designer clothes! They try to fit in and look like us but they fail incredibly!
And how many pockets are being picked within the crowd...
Me and my mate actually looked at what they are doing there for like 1h. I am shocked that there is no police there all the time to take them everytime they do this. There is approx 5-8 ppl involved in this. The guy in denim jacket with tatoo on his neck is also part of it. You can tell. When they make someone loose they will all go separate ways and come back to same spot within 5 minutes then rinse and repeat. I have seen same people last year september there which means business is still good. Sad
A regular foot patrol would sort this in no time.
@@geoffpoole483 ye but this is happening there everyday and i can’t see anyone doing anything.
Thank you, Mikey. Plenty of people learned something from you. Good effort.
This scam has been around for ever. You'd think people would be aware of this shell game by now.
I didn’t realise this was much of a problem in London - if you ever go to places like Italy, it’s like this in all the major cities over there sadly
The scary thing is, the way violence has escalated in the last decade, I'd be worried about a screwdriver in the kidneys.
And another thing! If double red lines means NO STOPPING, how on earth is there an ice-cream van parked up?
The likelihood of being caught is so low that they just do it anyway.
To be fair, he did have cones.
@@SmokingLaddy Cones! Very good!
Its the scammers cash van.
That girl who walked past and remarked: " Its fine don't worry about it"
NO lady, NO. WE the PEOPLE , we absolutely MUST worry about it!
I implore her to respond to this comment if shes out there and reading this, for what she said was foolish and highly irresponsible and poor advice.
We the PEOPLE absolutely MUST worry about it!
Worry worry worry, oh dear me what a terrible world we have to live in but don't worry about it! lol
Sorry there Cycling Mikey, hi btw 😀
Just a little 'flustered' lately.
Sub'd
While the crowd watch the scammers, their associates pick your pockets..
It is absolutely beyind ne why Westimnster Council ir the Police have let this happen for years and years. Disgraceful, in a world of of AI, Facial Recognition and CCTV. They could stop this easily.
You are a brave man Mikey, well done.
Mikey has no fear
@@blondbreaze Nah mate. Proves you don't know him.
Mikey please be careful , I don’t want you to be thrown in the river !
@mikewest1542 It's the stabbers he needs to be careful of. London is overcrowded, and people carrying knives blend in and vanish quickly. I don't feel safe in London.
@@archivist17still though caution must be taken when confronting these people as they can become very dangerous if they are provoked
As an ex pat Brit I am amazed how little police presence there is in a busy and heavily touristed area, and that is not a political comment. An old beat bobby nicking a few of these would have impact. Equally London is covered by close circuit television is that footage only available for major crimes? In Colombia where I live, a poor country, tourist areas have plenty of police around
Sadly, it would only deter them for the time the copper or PCSO is within earshot, and when one or two get nicked the Police are too busy dealing with them. Or they move to another area. You did notice how many of them there are? We'd need a dozen or more officers on the bridge to have even the slightest chance of dealing with them. We've under-funded our public services so terribly that we can't afford to have beat bobbies, we certainly can't have a dozen or two officers wasting time in vain to stop people falling for obvious scams.
Well I won’t disagree on the underfunding of public services in the UK. But just ignoring this has poor outcomes as well. Other countries have Tourist Police. In the UK tourists tend to be very concentrated (getting them out of London is an issue) and the number of sites they congregate very focused around the Central Core. Tourist Police with limited powers - and equally less training - should hardly break the exchequer. Maybe even for Special Constabulary. Obviously tourist are not voters so there is always the political excuse to ignore this, but London and the UK can do better. There’s a core of rogues here. They do not hide - this is a very visible crime.
@@truebrit3578 Although tourists aren't voters they're very likely to tell friends and family about negative experiences on holiday, and the UK makes a lot of money from tourism. What I found most unsettling about this video was the fact the scammers were on Westminster Bridge, at the heart of the capital, close to the Houses of Parliament and the Met's HQ. City Hall isn't far away either. The police couldeasily launch an operation to arrest these lowlifes.
@@geoffpoole483 politicians increasingly these days do what their base want. If the Daily Mail or the Telegraph made a fuss about this you would government members running to express concern.
While i applaude Steve for calling these Eastern immigrants out on their scams, so many comments that the police should do something. But remember it's very difficult for the police to do anything because we have a very weak justice system and lenient immigration policy.
The man power needed to constantly deal with petty crime would be too much. They also have spotters either end of the bridge. Plain clothes police would be made after a while also. The police have to deal with traffic accidents, fights, car theft, home invasions, domestic violence, shop lifting, knife crime, drugs, anti social behavior let alone the constant terrorist threat just to name a few things the police have to attend to
I've seen the same scam (cup and ball/3 card monte) in Paris Rome Budapest Milan Athens..... practically EVERYWHERE
The time and cost to arrest them transport them to the station, charge them, pay for an interpreter, give them their rights give then a free lawyer etc etc then release them..... just not worth it
The real scam is people are still falling for this trick, the oldest one in the book. Who the hell would give £££ to some Eastern Europeans on a bridge in public thinking their have a chance of winning money hahaha
It's a great trick/scam....... it's playing on our human nature of greed and the chance (you think) of making money. It could be crypto currency, materworks, ponzi schemes, time share or handing over bank details or gifts card over the phone to an Indian scammer living in Kolkata pretending to be from Amazon or microsoft or from your bank or the NIgerian romance scam etc etc etc
I have personally seen this same scam in Milan Rome Venice Paris Budapest Athens etc etc
Yes it is a bit of a scam as you have ZERO chance of winning but nobody is forcing people to place a bet to guess the ball and try to win money
It's no more worse than a card trick where you bet and lose money...
Thank you so much for helping people like me to be aware of scammers in London ❤❤❤
There should be police community support officers visible at all tourist hotspots. This is tragic
they are all over london police cant be everywhere
ah yes lets pay 2 cops 500per day to stand around
The biggest thing to be aware of with these sleazeballs is not even the scammers, but the ones doing pick pocketing.
If you see them, it's safer to just cross the road.
It's an easy, cheap fix: every 20m or so have signs warning the tourists about scammers operating in the area, but I suppose that would be an admission that police doesn't really do their job.
Mikey, this could be your new videos! To stop these scammers. I have personally helped a lady last time I was in London, she was about to hand over £40 to these scammers.
Good job!
Even today, these guys are still setting up shop here and everytime I walk along this bridge, I rarely see police patrolling this area. Police don't do anything. They just let this slide and when you report it, they would just blame the victim's naivete in allowing it to happen in the first place. It's a bad experience for tourist who would be left with a negative impression of their holiday due to this incident.
I pass this all the time on my commute and it’s shocking that people fall for it. Mikey im beginning to think you are ex Dutch special forces and fear no one 😂🤙🏻🤙🏻🤙🏻well done.
Pretty shocking Westminster council and the Met not getting on top of this.
I’ve often seen the gangs sharing the money on the tube after a hard days swindling
There is a lady in Venice who blows a whistle & shouts thieves at these sort of gangs, you are braver than me I wouldn't take on foreign gangs in case they learnt where I lived.
What a useful contribution to society this activity is.
Tourists must be so bored & loaded
We should get a whole load of you tubers up on the bridge filming these guys every weekend…especially in the sumner
This has been going on for years. Why the police can't get a grip I just don't know. Good for you Mikey!
All you need to get the police to stop them is report them for calling you by the wrong pro nouns and in two minutes you'll have 500 armed riot police there ready to arrest them.
The way they get away with it is they have "look outs" at each side of the bridge and around the scammers as soon as the police turn up they scatter but leave the mats on the floor and" look outs" stand watch near by (you can usually tell them by their fake designer gear) the people who win are part of the group and are used to draw in potential "marks". The woman in the blue top with grey sweatter and the bloke wit her are part of the group as soon as they left the scammer left not far behind. as the scammers walk off notice how they leave the mats used in the scam behind a "lookout" will stand near the mat (you can usually spot them a mile off if you know how) and the scammer will return in a few mins and start again.
I feel for this in Italy back 2004.
What I couldn't understand was that I was watching from my balcony and got right every time !
But when I played I lost !
There are people in the crowd that are part of it !
No shit
Given how many police spend all day doing absolutely nothing, why can they not just have 2 police permantly positioned on the bridge to stop this from happening?
Because the courts Wont do anything basically
@@petesmart1983but the harassment factor stops the criminals so people don’t lose thier money and the lanes are not dangerously blocked.
If we remove the primary harm then court penalties are an after thought
@@donaldpyper4627 Regular foot patrols would do it.
What I don't understand is why they don't have police in the area to watch that bridge. Every time I've been there, there are these 4 or 5 groups of scammers surrounded by people.
We’ll done for warning people about this Mikey. Your very brave to do that. Not sure if these people can be violent or anything. Most people don’t care. And just carry on about there day. That’s a very good thing to do
This has been going on in Benidorm for a long long time, I get the feeling that the cops there are receiving a back hander to turn a blind eye !! 🤔
Remember this scam at the races 40 odd years ago, it was 3 cards and choose the Ace, guy in the audience keeps winning money and whispers to you that the Ace is "marked". Of course while he is whispering the cards are swapped and you follow his lead and lose your money.
Mikey, doing the work of the Police AGAIN!
if only there were actual bobbies on the beat patrolling these high traffic tourist areas, it would be so easy to stop this kind of criminality
Not at all these kind of things happen when the police were there, they just run away and return, if they get caught, the courts will fine them and that's it
Why would an organisation, employed by the biggest scammers in the country do anything about it?
The hand is quicker than the eye. You're a good man Mikey, you handle every situation I've seen with class and dignity no matter the circumstances
I liked the part when the Police turned up and arrested these criminals that were breaking the law in broad daylight in front of everyone without a care in the world... oh wait...
I nissed that bit!
@@geoffpoole483 It happens 3 weeks into Mikey's video.
(Cough)
Can’t believe this happens on Westminster Bridge in central London. I haven’t lived in London for almost 20 years. This makes me feel sad.
One would probably expect to see it at one of the tackier tourist spots in London, but this is a very short distance from the Houses of Parliament, which is very heavily policed. The Met and the Mayor of London should feel embarrassed.
@@geoffpoole483 yes. Is it so bad in London these days?
I used to work on the London Eye back in the day... And its basically assumed that theres gonna be these scammers... you can't stop it unless youre there every day
You need to watch the handlers & pickpockets working the back of the crowds.
why don't undercover police deal with these scumbags
they do, they arrest them and take them to the station, after that it's in the hands of the law the judicial system the home office to deport them etc, the police don't make the law they enforce it, as you saw at the end of the video 2 got caught 2 weeks earlier
I’d love to do this and pass them fake money
Just a heads up for anyone thinking they've seen people win this.... they're involved in the scam. A good portion of them people surrounding that guy were involved in this scam. Keep safe people don't gamble :)
Thank you for your comment. This is not gambling. Gamble only as much as you can lose. All the best regards to you 🙏
@namastezen3300 totally understand that this is a scam and not gambling, but from the untrained eye, this is gambling to them. But I totally get what you mean :)
Them words only gamble what you can afford to lose is easier said than done. Took me a quarter of my life to learn that. Stopped gambling 4 years ago and never felt better :) god bless
@@alrightboblive thank you for your reply. Just another scam. Like a lot of things. I'm glad that you are in control of your gambling. Additionally, for me, if I can't win on that first dollar, I'm not going to win. Winnings go into a separate pocket and I am willing to gamble that dollar again, but I know that when I dip into the winnings pocket, that money is lost. All the best regards to you 🙏
@@namastezen3300 Gambling is for mugs. The house is operating a business and always wins.
@@nick1635 if the house "always" wins, it's not gambling; it's a scam. Gambling means that there is a chance of winning; if you don't play, you can't win. Gamble only as much as you can lose. I hope that helps clarify, I'm here to help. (If I can't win on that first dollar, I'm not going to win) all the best regards to you 🙏
1) do they have a work permit?
if not, then
2) do they have a residency permit?
if not, then
WHY DID THE UK BOTHER TO DO THE BREXIT IF THE SITUATION IS STILL THE SAME 5 YEARS LATER?
Well done for doing this. I was disgusted to see this crime taking place all across that bridge when I walked it. I can't believe that it is allowed to go on there all day every day, and directly outside the building where laws are made. The council should have wardens on there all day every day, instead of ticketing bad parkers.
Ah, so this is where all the Neuro Surgeons, Astro Physicists, and Climatologists congregate in their spare time?
I wondered where they end up after disembarking from their small boats in Dover.
It's crazy what people fall for.
Good on you,exposing those scam artists, and making their life difficult. However people should, know better and not fall for the scams.. Once in you're likely to, try win back what you lost.
Where are the Police, to crackdown on those people, involved i. Illegal gambling.
Nice video 👍👍
Especially admire the work ethic the team employ to take money
Back in 1845, 1693, 1527, people were walking down streets like this as these games played on saying to themselves "I can't believe people are falling for this. It's been around for centuries" 😂
What Country is that ?
YOU ARE A HERO MIKEY
The dangerously parked ice cream vans you mentioned in your description is something I noticed in quite a number of those London "walkabout" YT videos.
It causes the cycle lane to be blocked by pedestrians
Fell for this in Spain once, always young people unaware so bravo for saving people hundreds in this video alone.
Good job Mikey! looking out for the people.
how do people NOT know this is a scam? This is one of the oldest scams in every major city.
But in Hearts in Atlantis Bobby Garfield defeats and wins against the scammer. 😜
That's a scammers paradise on that Bridge along with a pickpockets. Watch out for your wallet and purse.
I was going to mention that, while punters are concentrating on the performance, they are easy pickings for pickpockets.
They often get released the next day with a warning. It’s a never ending cycle.
Why dont they post signs that tell people that these type of scams are there
Sadly the reason so many people fall for this is because they usually have a stooge that is part of their gang, and the stooge always wins…the innocent bystanders see this and assume it must be legit so fall for it.
this is where you announce you work for HMRC and everyone who wins has to pay a 20% gambling tax.
Easy to stop these bike people, get uncover cops on Westminster Bridge, film, arrest these evil people and deport them….
I think Mickey should become a harmless batman cylcing round the city solving crimes with his go pro and annoyingly persistent temperament.
Mikey has balls of concrete!!
We have the same in Paris... It's very annoying. Locals know what's up but tourists are getting scammed all the time.
That cycle lane across the bridge looks a right pain. So many pedestrians all over it. I noticed cyclists avoiding it by cycling in the main carriageway with motor vehicles to avoid the issues.
Those scammers blocking the pavement causing people into the cycle lane, another reason why they should be got rid of
please do more on these crooks
for years they been doing it and this not as stopped yet
The scammers play into the basic human instinct of greed.
Love this side to Mikey - Bless you putting yourself in danger with these scammers !
This is no different from National Lottery - a tax on the incurably optimistic.
Great to see a guy there in the Carter USM t-shirt - the classic 1992 Love Album.
The gypsies, the travellers and the thieves......The good, the bad, the average and unique.....The grebos, the crusties and the goths! .....And the only living boy in New Cross X
Blocking everyone on the bridge and turning the place into a fairground.. Surely wherever money is involved you'd need a permit to busk, unless the bridge is a loophole, so it wouldn't matter if it was a scam or not to report
You should see the real-life Disney palaces they're building when they return to Romania. I tend to always help poor people and beggars when I see them in need back here in Romania, but these ones' audacity after coming back home is honestly vomitive. Of course, here's the classic "you guys should know that this is a very very small part of Romanian people" but I think, after all these years this phrase sounds just ridiculous for English people/other nations roaming scammers' areas.
Although, never seen more aggresive scammers than in Times Square, NY. At least these ones are a bit friendly 🤣
Drain, country, the, down.... rearrange as you feel it.
Surprised there's not police walking up and down this particular area if it's so popular with scammers.
They're still carrying on knowing the police won't bother going around there to prevent them doing it.
I have no idea who you are, this is the first video of yours I’ve seen, but please be careful when exposing these people. Some of them may get violent, and a camera isn’t always the shield people think it will be.
Can I ask, please... what are they actually doing? ... or getting the people to do? How does this work / what stakes are people losing?
The cup and balls game is easily rigged/manipulated with slight of hand