Met Police admit system error misdirected journalist after camera theft

The Metropolitan Police have admitted a system error led to a journalist being wrongly directed to the City of London Police following the theft of a camera from a pub in Shoreditch. The force has apologised for the handling of the initial report and stated that internal reviews have been completed.

The incident occurred last week when the journalist was celebrating a colleague's final shift at a bar near Old Street station. While having a drink, a black rucksack containing a video camera, tripod, and microphone vanished. CCTV footage showed two men appearing to steal the bag by dragging it away with a strap.

Misdirection by the Met

Upon realising the theft, the journalist contacted 999 and stated the incident occurred in Shoreditch, near Old Street station. The operator informed the victim that the exact address was not in their system and that they should contact the City of London Police. Despite the victim's insistence that the location was within the Met's jurisdiction, they were given the City Police's number.

The City of London Police were reportedly helpful in filing the crime report, but by this time, the bag had been missing for 45 minutes, potentially allowing the suspects to escape. The following morning, the Metropolitan Police contacted the victim to apologise, admitting they should have handled the report themselves. They explained the misdirection was due to a mistake in their system.

According to the Met Police, the system flagged the address without a 'Happy House' tag, which normally indicates an address within their jurisdiction. This, combined with other indicators such as the postcode (EC2A) and proximity to Old Street Station, should have prompted the operator to handle the call. The force stated that 'appropriate action has been taken' following an internal review to prevent similar errors.

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police said: “We apologise for the handling of this call and for any additional distress this caused. The call has been reviewed internally, and appropriate action has been taken to ensure the same mistake does not happen again. The investigation into the theft is ongoing.” The journalist noted that had the initial report been handled correctly, patrolling officers might have been dispatched with suspect descriptions.