Pick pockets in Rome

Thank you for your post. That is heartbreaking for the woman you saw robbed.

Rome has always been notorious for pickpockets. Forty years ago, they got my library copy of Fodor guide to Rome, which was the only thing in my bag except a comb.

The nationality of pickpockets is not terribly important. I am sure there are some good Italians that have tried this income enhancement activity. We have spent maybe five weeks or a bit more in Rome over the past 30+ years. We have never had a problem or seen an attempt BUT have talked with a number of people who have lost a billfold, camera, etc. In nearly every case (I would say all but someone will argue with me) the victim was careless. Made it easy to be a mark. As long was you use some precautions, stay alert in very crowded situations like the metro, you will be fine. My question to myself is ---- Is it easy for me to get to??? If it is, it is just as easy for the pickpocket. Just don't look like an easy mark.

Those Pickpockets are not roman, they are not even Italian

I don't think the OP intended to say that Romans are poor and therefore they have to steal on the metro to make ends meet. We all know that 99% of petty criminals in Italy are not Italian, and from the description of the event those girls were almost certainly gypsies aka "Romani" or "Rom" people, which doesn't mean from Rome but "man" in the Romani language and are likely originally from Eastern Europe.

The OP probably meant that average nominal salaries in Italy are lower compared to the income of many tourists from richer countries like Germany or US/Canada and therefore those locals represent a less palatable target for these thieves, since locals don't carry a lot of cash and expensive gear (like cameras) on them.

You may be rich, but it is true that the average take home salaries or pensions in Italy are not much more than 1,000 (mille) euro a month for many Italians without a university degree. A 2,000 euro net pay a month is considered a good salary for most Italians, for example a newly graduated nurse or high school teacher in Italy earns considerably less than 2000€/month net.

In any case, the fact that those thieves are not Italians in 99.9% of cases doesn't change the fact that tourists should be careful while traveling on crowded public transit. That Italians may be rich or not doesn't change the fact that Rome is plagued by these Romani girls and kids, whose main activity seems to be depriving visitors of their wallets and phones, since the Italian authorities, especially the judicial system, don't want to do anything about it.

In case it feels like some context is missing, I cleaned out an issue here, but wanted to keep Roberto's post.

Please keep any further replies about the OP's topic about pickpocketing.

I've heard that part of the problem with the pickpockets is that its so easy to jump to another country if they run into problems with law enforcement.

I've also heard of many "smart" people who were being careful and were pickpocketed. One being Rick Steves. I appreciate when travelers share their stories, but it doesn't stop me from traveling.

While waiting to store my luggage on a train leaving Milan, two women/girls were crowding me. Seemed odd, I looked down and one had her hand under a scarf and in my purse. I told her in a loud and serious voice to get her hand out of my purse, or I'd break it. They ran down the aisle and off the train. They wouldn't have gotten much since our train snacks were at the top of my purse. In any case, I now use a purse that locks or I safety pin the zipper shut. And if a situation feels odd, be extra careful to safequard your belongings.

Thank you for the reminder. Travelers must be diligent at ALL times. It’s an easy crime to prevent, but too many think “it won’t happen to me.” Or they let their guard down. Traveling with my sister in Spain, she had someone attempt to pickpocket her. I recognized the setup and made a big ruckus. That’s the other issue - people don’t want to make a scene. If you see something, make a scene!

I also think this is a good reminder that it's still important to be vigilant and take precautions against pickpockets when travelling in Europe. This is especially important in very crowded places like public transit or tourist sites. Locations that come to mind are crowded Metro trains or in front of popular sights like the Mona Lisa. A money belt worn under clothing is still an effective solution. In addition to cash and credit cards, extra precautions are also needed with mobile phones these days.

There is unfortunately a lot of crime these days in Rome, Paris, and Berlin. I observed several incidents in the metro during my short stay in each of these places.

Always be vigilant! The OP is right, don't focus on your cell phone or other objects when embarking or disembarking. Hide everything you don't want to lose.

Having walked around Rome quite a bit over the last 15 years--and for 4 days this last April--I can say that it doesn't appear like there's much crime, but we didn't ride the Metro or buses recently, finding an easier solution by calling (or making an appt with) FreeNow, the Uber-like service that works pretty well in Rome. And it's reasonably-priced as well.

Or by foot. One later afternoon-into-evening we walked from Campo de' Fiori a little over a mile to Prati, seeing the sunset over the Tiber. Just beautiful. To get home we walked as well, and maybe because we were four people, we didn't get accosted or even approached. So even later at night--10PM--it didn't seem dangerous at all, even with few people about in stretches.

Nevertheless, I'm careful. Because I'm forever thinking my hands aren't free with all the crap I bring with me, I did purchase one of those Scott E Vests with about 18 pockets, which worked well as long as I remembered where I put everything.

Crime is indeed very low in Italy, including Rome, but pickpocketing of tourists does happen, whether is snatching the mobile phone from someone's purse/pocket, or stealing a bag on a train (a less frequent occurrence).

The important thing to know is that, according to the Italian Polizia di Stato (State Police) 90% of these criminal events happen on public mass transit (buses, subways, trains), so one needs to be very careful when using those, if you decide to use them.

Another place to be careful is crowded public markets, and also while sitting at outside tables (don't place phones or purses on tables or behind chairs where passersby can easily grab them and run away with them while you are enjoying your cappuccino).

When ever we sit down with a day bag or even a jacket, I will drape it over the back of the chair --- BUT --- always make certain that a bag strap or jacket sleeve is attached to the chair. If the bag is grabbed, the chair goes with it. Never had a problem but always the next trip.

Not just Italy, we were on an overground train heading into Westminster this morning and a local started a conversation with us and asked if we'd been to London before, He then warned us to keep our bags close to us and our hand in our pockets guarding our phone. He says it's become a real problem.

But you can make the same claim of New York, Chicago, etc.

Happened to my husband in just the conditions he was warned about- very full Metro. He was being vigilant, but (stubbornly) thought it was secure enough to have his wallet in his zipped front pant pocket. He always kept a hand on it in busy areas. He was shoved, needed to put a hand out to catch himself and that was enough. They unzipped his pocket, took the wallet and zipped the pocket back up and he hardly felt a thing, but realized something was going on. By then door opened and they were gone. After, we marveled at the skill!
Luckily, our credit card company immediately recognized the fraudulent charges and blocked all use. And since I always wear a cross body bag under my outer layer and carry alternate cards we were OK. But he learned an important lesson!

”In nearly every case (I would say all but someone will argue with me) the victim was careless.”

I think there’s two dangers - either feeling paranoid the entire trip that you’re a pickpocket target or on the flipside, feeling like it couldn’t happen to you because you’re careful…or could spot it happening & could prevent it.

A few years ago, my older daughter and I were getting onto a crowded Rome metro, similar to the situation shared here. One lady was somewhat blocking the entrance. I moved past her, but she had my daughter’s crossbody purse unzipped as my daughter entered the car. A woman saw it, yelled at her, and she quickly exited. My daughter wasn’t careless; she had the purse next to her body. She also had her essentials in her money belt under her clothes. I require that my daughters wear a money belt if they’re traveling with me internationally. It takes care of the worry, so we can just enjoy our trip.

I will admit that even as a fairly seasoned traveler I had built up quite a bit of paranoia when I visited Rome...even bought a Travelon purse, which I liked for the locking zippers, though it was smaller than my trusty LeSportsac crossbody. I kept my wits about me, though I did not wander around clutching it, either. Never observed any pick-pocket or scam activity, and when I got to Budapest I happily switched to my LeSportsac.

I was on the metro with my family when someone tried to pick pocket my wife. My wife and I were sort of bracketing our kids because the train was crowded, so she and I were a few feet away from each other. A kid (probably 11-12 years old) started probing her pants pockets. She said she turned towards him and was going to say something but that she made eye contact with another passenger who shook his head "no". She forced her way into a space out of the kid's reach and noticeably kept her focus in his direction so he would not try to finish his search. He was wasting his time trying to search into her pants pockets when everything of value was safely stored elsewhere.

Im not seasoned traveler, just a hack tourist and this sure does take a lot of the fun out of Prague, Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Berlin, etc. At this stage in my life, just not something I want to deal with.

Don’t be discouraged Mr. Ê. At this stage of our life it’s time to switch to taxicabs (and uber where available) or just walk for shorter distances, and avoid crowded buses/metro altogether. A bit more expensive than mass transit, but peace of mind is priceless, for everything else there is Mastercard.

I did Rome and Paris a lot 15 to 25 years ago. There were a lot of pickpockets then too. I dont think much has changed since the Schengen border arrangements. But thats perception and maybe I am dead wrong.

Lets not blame it only on the Eastern Europeans or other foreigners. The Romani which i think is part of the Eastern Europeans you are refering to were there when Eastern Europe still had closed borders. The 120,000 to 180,000 Romani are the largest minority population in Italy and 65% of them are Italian citizens.

I live in a tourist city in a country that has a Romani population of over 700,000, most of which are citizens and my city is in Eastern Europe and we have very few pickpocket problems (almost unheard of).

this is slightly off topic:
My wife had better awareness of our surroundings and pointed out a man/woman couple that were following us. I started to pay attention and concurred ... and we wondered what their goal / gameplan was. We had a pass for free entry into several museums and we went into one and they followed us inside - when they saw the fee, etc, they left. We kept our eyes pealed for them when we left.

So "watch your surroundings" but don't get paranoid.

Evan, thats creepy. The only city I have had any problem was in Paris. One trip a young lady tried to open my back pack, while I was wearing it. The next day at the eiffel tower a group of ladies got into a fight directly under the eiffel tower. When the tourists gathered to watch, anothe group of ladies worked their wallets. The police and a few of us that were smart enough to stay away watched ... yes ... the police watched. ONe lady walked past me taking money out of a wallet then tossed it in the bushes. Not 3 feet from where I sat. Never in more than 50 trips have i seen anything like that since.

26 years ago in Edinburgh, my husband went off on his own to explore while I went to meet a friend living there.
Three youths tried to get his daypack off him in the narrow street behind the Cafe Royal.
I’m sure one still has a badly misshapen jaw from making direct contact with my big and tall husband's well placed elbow.
They didn’t get the backpack.
One attempted failed pickpocket attempt in Rome on 2013 on my friend walking with me.
I screamed at the two girls, one of whom was about 10 years old, the other a teen.
The older one just smirked at us as if to say “We’ll get the next one, plenty of you out there”.