Do you recognise this phone thief?

(the picture is much better than the preview shows, it is very distinctive.

Matt Parker reports:

Last night I had the misfortune to be on one of the last trains out from London Waterloo, the 00:09 to Guildford...

There were the usual fellow passengers, dotted around both the intoxication spectrum and the carriage.

So no one took much notice when a rather drunk girl collapsed in a seat for a while and then got up and drifted off, seemingly looking for a toilet. However, she had left her bags behind and never came back for them.

Once we assumed she had alighted from the train, the phone in her bag began ringing incessantly.

Assuming it might be her, I eventually answered it and assured a friend of hers that she had been on the train and hopefully got off at the correct stop.

I said that if she didn’t come back for her bags, I would hand them in to Guildford Station last-and-found where she could easily collect them.

So I went back to my seat, still many station-stops from Guildford, and resumed my desultory twittering.

One of the other few people in the carriage though, got up and came and sat near the bag.

During the casual carriage-banter when I first answered the phone, he had suggested to the whole carriage that we nick the phone.

Thus I was already keeping an eye on him when he moved over and then took the phone out of the bag.

I was – to say the minimum – outraged.

So I began initially tell him to put the phone back before escalating to a full yelling-at, during which I had the presence of mind to turn my phone on and video the whole thing...

Matt Parker's blog also contains a screenshot of the thief.

If you do recognise the man in the above video, contact the British Transport police on 0800 40 50 40, or call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.