Police are hunting for a man who used a bizarre dance to distract his victim and steal his mobile phone.
Officers in Nottingham have issued an appeal and released footage of the pickpocket, who they say pretended to be drunk to fool his victim into thinking he was harmless.
A brief video clip issued by Nottinghamshire Police on Monday, November 24, 2025, shows the man approaching a victim in Clumber Street, in Nottingham city centre, shortly after 7:30 a.m. on November 16, 2025.
The force said in a statement describing the incident: “After greeting the man with a fist bump and engaging him in conversation, he performs a bizarre dance where he places one of his legs between the victim’s legs and jumps up and down.”
Officers were able to use CCTV to track the offender’s prior movement to a McDonald’s.
Police said the person of interest did not appear to be intoxicated in CCTV footage from the McDonald’s restaurant, which was recorded just minutes before the theft occurred.
He greets him with a fist bump before busting out the unusual moves – placing his leg between the victim’s limbs and jumping up and down.
The person of interest then removed the man’s phone from his pocket before hiding it behind his back and making his escape.
Police are now urging anyone who can identify the man to get in touch with the force.
They added that this indicated that “he pretended to be intoxicated as part of a ploy to trick the victim into thinking he posed no threat and was being jovial”.
A clear image of the person responsible for this distraction theft has now been released, and police are urging people to contact them if they know who he is.
Inspector Paul Gummer, of the City Centre neighbourhood policingteam, warned people to remain vigilant.
He added that it was common for such offenders to claim they were performing a traditional cultural dance, while in fact making a cynical attempt to distract attention away from a victim’s pockets.
He went on to say that people should “watch out for it happening to anyone else, particularly those who may be slightly too merry to recognise what’s happening to them during this festive period”.
