A British tourist was mugged for his diamond Rolex worth £100,000 moments after his mobile phone was snatched from his hands in the Spanish island of Mallorca.
The 55-year-man was targeted twice – just minutes apart – after leaving a bar on promenade of the Mediterranean city of Palma.
The victim, who has remained anonymous, was withdrawing cash from a machine close to the popular La Bodeguita Del Medio bar when the first attack happened.
A thief had followed him from the bar before sneaking behind him and stealing his iPhone, worth another £840.
Before he knew it, another two men ambushed him and threw him to the ground.
They snatched his diamond Rolex President Day-Date watch off his wrist before fleeing the scene.
The owner valued it at £150,000, but officials in Spain put the price at £100,000.
Details of the shocking crimes, which took place in the early hours of March 10, came to light after the three thieves were brought into court.
Amine Benserai, 34, and Hicham Ziroki, 33, both from Algeria, were unmasked as the watch robbers.
Both men were found guilty and were jailed for two years each for the violent Rolex robbery.
Another Senegalese man they sold the designer watch to for £5,000, named as Mbaye Modou Anna, got a six-month suspended prison sentence for receiving stolen goods.
Meanwhile, Mbengue Alla, 31, from Senegal, was given a three-month suspended prison sentence for the mobile phone theft following a trial at a court in Palma.
Police in several parts of Spain have created specialist groups to tackle designer watch muggers, who usually come from Naples in Italy, North Africa or Eastern Europe.
Tennis star Grigor Dimitrov became a victim of the gangs dealing with designer watch muggings in April last year.
The 33-year-old Bulgarian had a £62,000 timepiece ripped off his wrist in his car as he returned from training ahead of the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell tournament.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
