ASYLUM seekers staying in taxpayer-funded hotels are swiping thousands of pounds of designer gear from top stores.
Tipped off by a security firm, we saw organised gangs exit Liberty in London with alarm-dodging bags of luxury items.
Ian WhittakerAsylum seekers were caught on video leaving their taxpayer-funded hotels to raid 15 stores in five hours[/caption]
Ian WhittakerCap-wearing thief inside the central London Reiss store[/caption]
Ian WhittakerThe same man with jeans shorts in John Lewis on Oxford Street[/caption]
They pounced at stores including Liberty, Polo Ralph Lauren and John Lewis — then headed back to their Holiday Inn home.
The Sun was alerted to the situation by exasperated security staff who feel powerless to stop the brazen thefts.
A whistle-blower said 70 per cent of shoplifters in the West End are asylum seekers.
The man, who works in private security, said his teams are at breaking point and the area “verging on lawless”.
He added: “The police rarely attend and the maximum we can hold them for is four hours — after that we just have to let them go. We see the same faces again and again.”
Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick said: “It is a slap in the face to British people for illegal migrants to break into the UK then engage in brazen criminality. They need to be deported immediately.
“The small boats are fuelling crime and making the public less safe. It’s a national security emergency and Keir Starmer should treat it as one.”
Last Thursday we saw a team of two migrants meet up at the Holiday Inn, Wembley.
They carried bags lined with tin foil that stop security tags going off when leaving stores.
After jumping Underground ticket barriers they headed to Bond Street station before hitting 15 nearby shops including Lillywhites, Hollister and Reiss.
Later they met other teams and showed their ill-gotten gains.
They also appeared to take stolen goods to a middle man before buying whisky and returning to the hotel.
It is believed many migrants shoplift to pay debts they owe bosses behind the crossings.
Our whistle-blower said that, when detained, the migrants show ID cards and admit they are asylum seekers, knowing that little can be done.
The security professional added: “The situation is getting out of control. We are helpless and cannot tackle the sheer numbers flooding the streets.
“I honestly think the area is verging on lawless. The police only turn up in two out of every ten men we detain.
“They don’t have the resources, and when they do, the most they do is give them a Community Resolution Order.
Ian WhittakerOur investigators watched as gangs used professional tactics to raid shops in the West End[/caption]
Ian WhittakerMigrants stroll through Soho with bag carrying their stolen goods[/caption]
“For me and my team, the men are easy to spot because they constantly reoffend.
“Once we do detain them, that just means their mates are even busier. They are often violent as well. We print the prices for the stolen items and take mugshots and their ID cards to give to the police.
“Usually it is high-ticket goods they target like Gucci, Prada and Louis Vuitton.
“Sometimes they won’t have any ID but they tell us they came over on the boats and their address is the Holiday Inn or the Barbican.”
The whistle-blower added of the alarm-dodging foil bags: “They know what they are doing. They work in groups or pairs. One will be a spotter or cause a distraction while the other bags the stuff.
“We’ve noticed them sharing the same foil bag. So it is swapped around at the hotel depending who is going out on the rob that day. They always come after lunch, so 2pm.”
The Holiday Inn in Wembley is home to 700 immigrants and is one of more than 200 asylum hotels around Britain.
Residents get three meals a day and a weekly allowance.
Ex-Tory security minister Sir John Hayes said: “This very important investigation by The Sun shows Britain is importing criminals in droves.
“It’s not fair to taxpayers or businesses to endure criminals who fully know they’re here illegally then worsen that by committing further crimes.
“There is evidence here that this may be a very well organised crimewave, rather than sporadic cases by individuals.
“The Home Office must investigate immediately.”
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “No one claiming asylum should be breaking our laws and we will take robust action to remove anyone found to be doing so.
“Since July 2024, we have removed over 5,000 foreign national offenders – a 14% increase on the previous year.
“We are also cracking down on shoplifting across the country with 3,000 new neighbourhood police officers and PCSOs to keep our communities safe, and introducing tough new laws to tackle retail crime in our landmark Crime and Policing Bill.”
The Met said: “Our proactive patrols and activity solved 163 per cent more shoplifting cases this year than last.”
Holiday Inn was approached for comment.
Liberty, John Lewis and New West End Company which represents shops all declined to comment.
Ray CollinsWe saw a team of two migrants gather at the Holiday Inn, Wembley[/caption]
GettyThieves pounced at stores including Liberty[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
