How to Avoid the Most Common Pickpocket Scheme in Paris

Paris pickpocket artists can spot an American tourist the minute he or she steps from an airplane, train or boat. The most common indicator is the style of dress. Americans dress casually. The wearing of sneakers or other casual walking shoes is the first sign of a tourist. In summer., the wearing of shorts is an equally effective indicator as are printed tee shirts displaying the names of American colleges and universities.

Other obvious indicators include large cameras worn around the neck, baseball caps, and hand held video cameras.

On Paris streets organized gangs seek out tourists and may follow the targeted tourist for hours until the most desirable situation for launching an attack exists.

The most common sites for pickpocket activity are the densely crowded areas such as subway, ticket lines, money changing stations and popular museums such as the Louvre, where tourists gather in large numbers to catch a peek of the Mona Lisa or the statue of Venus. The pickpockets disperse in these crowds and are rarely noticed as there is constant jostling and bumping among those in the huge crowds at the most popular attractions.

Perhaps one of the most popular and most successful of all of the pickpocket scams is the following:

A small group (3-4) of well trained pickpockets will linger on the entry/exit ramps at Metro (subway) stations looking for a tourist exiting the Metro (subway) car. Once the targeted tourists are identified and communicated among the gang they will mix in with the group of departing Metro passengers heading for the escalator which provides access to the street level. Two gang members will locate themselves on the escalator step immediately behind the targeted tourists. A third gang member will locate himself several steps lower on the escalator. As the target reaches the halfway point on the escalator ride the third man will begin moving up the escalator by politely tapping people on the shoulder and gently pushing his way pass them until he reaches a position just in front of the targets. At this point he is very near the exit point of the escalator. Just as the escalator is about to deposit him onto the landing the third man, now in position directly in front of the targets, reaches into his pocket and pulls out a handful of coins, but awkwardly drops several onto the landing. Stepping onto the landing he bends over to pick up the coins, just as the target individuals are forced to step off of the moving escalator and bump hard into the gang member who is being very deliberate in picking up his coins. As the escalator continues to deposit people on the landing everyone, including the two pickpockets on the step behind the targets, are thrown violently into each other at which time the pickpockets quickly and without notice remove the wallets from the back pockets of the men in front of them.

With all of the commotion and multiple people being thrown into each other no one is even aware that the wallets have been lifted until it is far too late and the gang is long gone.

This scheme is reported time and again by Paris travelers.

It is almost never unsuccessful, and in the few cases in which the targeted tourist noticed his wallet being lifted he could do little about it as there is no police presence in the Metro.

The best way to combat this threat is to:

1. Be constantly alert in crowded venues.
2. Be suspicious of any stranger making an obvious effort to position himself/herself near you.
3. Do not keep wallets in rear pockets. The most secure place is in the front pocket with your hand also in the pocket.
4. Women should only carry purses with straps that can be wound around the wrist.
5. If possible do not carry a purse on the streets of Paris. Wear a zipped belly bag which is belted around your waist.
6. At currency exchange stations place money in an envelope before leaving the window. Do not display the number of bills received.
7. On Metros and Metro transport be especially alert.

Paris is beautiful, but it is filled with those who are very successful in relieving tourists of their money.

Be careful.