Not cool.
According to an article by the Evening Standard, up to 100 fans may have had their phones stolen by an organised group of thieves at While She Sleeps' recent London Roundhouse show.
Apparently frontman Loz Taylor was alerted to the thefts by security, told the crowd to check their pockets, and an alarming amount of people found themselves without their phone.
“Security told me 50 were stolen and that was only after the first three songs,” gig-goer Daniel Snow told the newspaper. “Some people were really angry, a lot were stressed but we were massively upset by it."
He also added: “The gang were clearly organised. Metal fans are a great community. No real fan would do something like this.”
A While She Sleeps fan named Conor Burke, also become the victim of theft, saying: "I didn’t feel anything and I couldn’t see it on the ground. I went to lost property, stood there for an hour talking to other people and there was just a constant flow of people coming out saying, 'We’ve had our phones nicked.'
“From the people I saw and talked to, and the amount of people coming and going, I’d say there was a minimum of 100 people. It was just ridiculous — it ruined the gig.”
Another person at the show, George Bowman, said he felt someone trying to steal his phone whilst he was crowd surfing, and it ended in a fight.
“I’ve got a bungee cord to stop it from happening to me,” he told the Evening Standard. “He tried again 15 minutes later and then I confronted him. He started trying to attack me, he tried to kick me. So I got someone to lift me over the barrier.”
According to the article, security made sure to search everyone leaving the venue, and make them unlock their phone to prove it was theirs, while a Met Police spokesperson commented: “Police have received 14 individual reports from people who stated that their mobile phones had been stolen either inside or outside a concert venue.”
The paper also noted that the Roundhouse were yet to comment on the matter.
It's sad to say, since rock and metal shows should be a place to relax and forget your worries, but stay safe out there, people!
