POLICE are warning members of the public to be aware of where their mobile phone is while in pubs and restaurants after two women stole three handsets from customers in Gloucester and Cheltenham in the space of 90 minutes.
Officers want to speak to two women in connection with the offences, which all happened on Wednesday (August 7).
Two iPhones were taken by the thieves at McDonald's in Westgate Street in Gloucester between 5.05pm and 5.15pm.
They grabbed one phone while the owner wasn't looking and after distracting someone else by asking for food they grabbed another and made off.
The women were described as Asian, with one wearing white jeans and a pink top.
Later in the evening at about 6.30pm two women approached two friends at a table outside the Slug and Lettuce pub in Regent Street in Cheltenham. A witness describes how the women were carrying bits of paper and begging for food before they grabbed an iPhone 5 in a Ted Baker case.
Anyone with information about any of these thefts should call 101, quoting incident 333 or 338 of August 7 for the McDonald's cases or incident 404 of August 7 for the Slug and Lettuce case.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here