America suffering from "iCrime Wave"

Muggers nabbing gadgets

19 October 2007 16:41 GMT / By Amy-Mae Elliott

We've seen similar headlines to this in the UK before, but there's an "iCrime wave" going on in the States, a new report suggests.

America is suffering a resurgence in muggings, which were up 7% last year. The Urban Institute, a Washington, DC think-tank, has blamed the increased figures on a familiar culprit - the iPod.

Same as in the UK, the report suggests iPods, often easily identifiable by the white headphones, are easy "snatch-and-grab" targets for muggers and are small and easy enough to sell on for quick profit.

There has been a documented iPod crime wave in the New York City subway system, but GPS devices and "cell" phones are all equally big targets for thieves, and, according to some in law enforcement, stolen gadgets are now a bigger problem than stolen cars.

Author of the report, John Roman, said: "There is a compelling correlation between when iPod sales took off and when the crime rate changed".

Full tags

Audio, iPod, Gadgets