This is the shocking moment thieves use sleight-of-hand tricks to pocket two brand new iPhone 8’s worth a total of £1,520.
Scottish electronics shop Replay It in Musselburgh, East Lothian, fell victim to the two con men yesterday as cashier Tasha McDonald, 18, worked behind the till.
They used a Call of Duty video game cover to hide the gadget boxes under, as they slyly took the phones out of their boxes and pocketed them.
The shop has posted CCTV footage from the incident online in the hope of catching the men.
Scottish electronics shop Replay It in Musselburgh, East Lothian, fell victim to the two con men (pictured) yesterday as cashier Tasha McDonald, 18, worked behind the till
Writing on Facebook, Replay It wrote: ‘Please share: Two men stole two iPhone 8 plus phones today at 12:25 in Musselburgh ReplayIT mobile shop.
‘If anyone recognises these two men please get in touch with the store, with me or with the police.’
Shop assistant Miss McDonald spoke of her shock, saying the men talked to her for 15 minutes while they swiped one phone worth £795, reversing roles and then taking the other, worth £725, before walking out.
She said: ‘They were probably in the shop for about 15 minutes in total.
‘They were saying a bunch of stuff I couldn’t understand so I was focusing on that when it happened.
‘When I would be talking to one I could only see the other from my peripheral vision so that’s when the other swiped each phone.
‘They had other things on the desk which they had put them under. One was an Xbox Call of Duty game.
They used a Call of Duty video game cover to hide the gadget boxes under, as they slyly took the phones out of their boxes and pocketed them
‘I think they were Eastern European, Romanian. A few other people have said they’ve seen them messing about with price tags in other shops too.
‘At first they said they wanted to see the iPhone X but it was wrapped up so I told them I couldn’t take it out.
‘They must have been planning it as they kept trying to get me to go and get something else, other phones, but when I did I put the phones under the desk.
‘By the end they said they didn’t have enough money on them and rushed off.
‘They had put the lid back on the boxes so I didn’t notice until my boss came back and noticed, asking: “Where are the phones?”
‘He was calm and just said we had better call the police then went to the back and seen it all on the CCTV.’
The CCTV from yesterday shows one of the crooks distracting the 18 year-old while the other holds the box with an iPhone 8 Plus inside.
The shop has posted CCTV footage from the incident online in the hope of catching the men
In a fraction of a second he can be seen transfering the phone out of the packaging and in to his hand while the Call of Duty game is used to shield his hands from view.
Having a quick look around the man then puts the phone below the counter out of sight and in to his pocket.
The two men then switch roles as the other then draws Tasha’s attention while the second begins to subtly un-box the mobile.
Using the Call of Duty game again, the man shields his hands and the box from view as he then pulls the iPhone out onto the counter and places the game on top.
Sliding the apparently untouched boxes back to the assistant while she is on the phone to her boss, the man then appears to slide the phone from under the game and into his trousers.
Deciding they were no longer interested in the gadgets, the pair then left the shop, leaving the shop over £1,500 out of pocket.
Police Scotland confirmed they were called to the shop on Musselburgh High Street at 12.56pm yesterday.
There have been no reports of any arrests made.