A “career criminal” who snatched mobile phones off lone women on tube stations across east London has been jailed for two years.

Mohamed Djiama, 28, of no fixed address, mostly stole from passengers travelling on Central or District line trains.

He would grab his victim’s phone and run off the train before they were able to stop him, a crime he repeated at stations including Bethnal Green, Tower Hill and Whitechapel between July and December.

He pleaded guilty to 18 counts of theft and one count of attempted theft on February 23.

Blackfriars Crown Court handed Djiama a 24-month prison sentence and ordered him to pay a £140 victim surcharge.

The court heard how an investigation by British Transport Police managed to link Djiama to all 19 offences.

He was arrested in Stepney on January 25 after a BTP officer spotted him whilst on patrol and charged the next day.

“His tactics were brazen, but his arrogance blinded him and he was caught by one of our officers at Stepney Green station,” said Det Con Owen Lynch of BTP.

“I am pleased he has been handed a custodial sentence meaning he is now unable to continue with his behaviour.

“We simply will not tolerate robberies such as this on the transport network and work hard to catch offenders.

“Thankfully we police a CCTV rich environment which helps us enormously in identifying offenders and their tactics. We then use this to track them down and, in Djiama’s case, bring them before the courts.

“If you’re using the rail network to commit your crimes, it is only a matter of time before we find you.”

Steve Burton, Transport for London director of compliance and policing, said: “All of our customers have the right to travel without fear of crime and we are pleased to see the successful sentencing of this prolific thief. We continue to work with the police to keep the network a safe, low-crime environment.”