A £300-a-month luxury gym should be a sanctuary of security and exclusivity – not a hunting ground for brazen, professional thieves.
Yet alarmingly, some of Britain’s most upmarket fitness clubs are being infiltrated by calculated criminals targeting lockers and vanishing with valuables, leaving members out of pocket and questioning how safe these premium spaces really are.
Reports of thefts – with culprits seemingly capable of cracking locker codes – range from high-end watches to deeply sentimental jewellery.
Influencer KT Franklin revealed in January that her bespoke gold cross necklace – crafted by a jeweller in the US – was stolen from a locker at Third Space, sharing the ordeal with her 3.1 million TikTok followers.
Taking to social media, Ms Franklin said: ‘Someone stole my necklace, and I am not over it – I literally can’t stop thinking about it.’
She shared that the necklace, which was ‘made for her’ as a bespoke piece, was nabbed from a locker she was using at the site while her back was turned for ‘two seconds.’
She warned her viewers: ‘There are thieves at that gym, Third Space in Wimbledon – please, please, please be careful.’
Now, just two months on, Third Space has issued a similar warning to members, urging vigilance when using their lockers.
Influencer KT Franklin (pictured) revealed that her bespoke gold cross necklace – crafted by a jeweller in the US – was stolen from a locker at Third Space gym in Wimbledon
In a statement, the company relayed concerns from the Metropolitan Police that ‘professional thieves are targeting luxury gyms, hotels and clubs across London.’
A similar warning was also posted on Facebook last December, where an anonymous member alerted gym-goers to thefts at a Virgin Active Wimbledon gym.
It read: ‘Heads up that thief( thieves) are active again at Virgin Wimbledon – just came from there and at least one credit card stolen from locked locker – was only left unattended for 15 mins.
‘This isn’t the first time but be super vigilant if you are a member.’
And unfortunately, this is not an isolated issue. David Lloyd Clubs and other high-end fitness chains have also been hit by similar incidents – despite the high cost of membership.
At Third Space, monthly membership can run at £285 for a group and £245 for individuals. At David Lloyd, fees can range from £70 to as much as £350 per month.
Among the victims is Dr Amir Savage, a 55-year-old dentist from Winchester, who fell prey to a calculated theft at David Lloyd Farnham, where membership cost him £214 per month.
His £18,000 limited-edition Rolex – a distinctive red-and-blue ‘Pepsi’ model – was taken from his locker while he relaxed in the sauna.
Dr Amir Savage (pictured) was robbed at David Lloyd gym in Farnham, where membership ran the dentist £214 per month
Dr Savage had his £18,000 limited-edition Rolex (pictured) taken from his locker while he relaxed in the sauna
Dr Savage had arrived early at the gym on February 3, placing his belongings in a locker secured with a combination padlock supplied by the club before beginning his workout.
What should have been a routine gym visit quickly turned into a nightmare. When he returned to change, the watch had vanished without a trace.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Dr Savage said: ‘I did a double-take and checked everything to make sure the watch was really gone.
‘Then, I went over to the front desk and said, look, this has happened. I said, what I’ll do is I’ll also go home and just double-triple check it is not there, so I’m absolutely certain it was taken at the gym.
‘I went back home, looked, and the watch wasn’t there. I returned to the gym and made a report to the duty manager.
‘He wrote everything down, but it just seemed as though this was a normal occurrence for them.’
Dr Savage later reported the incident to Surrey Police, with CCTV footage handed over as part of an ongoing investigation.
Fortunately, the luxury timepiece was insured – but for Dr Savage, the loss goes far beyond money and to the point that his valuables should have been safe to begin with.
Dr Savage (pictured) has reported the incident to the police, however, says he will not bring anything of value to the gym in the future to avoid the risk of theft
He said: ‘It is a case of this should have been prevented by the gym. You don’t expect to go to a gym, put your wallet, your credit cards, and your watch in a locker, and with a lock that’s supplied by the company, only for it to be picked.
‘I feel extremely stupid and foolish for actually bringing the watch into the gym, but having said that, I do want something good to come out of it, to warn other people about it, and to try and see if I can affect some change within David Lloyd.
‘Going forward, I’m not going to bring anything of value at all to any gym, because it’s just not worth that risk.’
A spokesperson for David Lloyd Clubs said they were ‘very sorry to hear’ of the incident, and added that they were in ‘regular contact’ with Dr Savage.
They said: ‘We have worked with the police to help identify the individual involved, providing all the information we have and offering CCTV to support their enquiries.
‘We always work closely with both members and the police and take a proactive approach where we are aware of any incidents, supporting investigations and taking appropriate action to protect our clubs.’
This kind of locker theft, however, is far from rare, but rather part of a larger network of crime.
Indeed, Third Space has reminded its members that the thieves are ‘determined and professional,’ and to utilise the valuable lockers the gym provides to keep their items safe.
Couple Ashley Singh and Sophie Bruyea (pictured) worked together to target 18 victims, breaking into lockers while gym-goers exercised and stealing bank cards and phones
On social media, Bruyea would flaunt her luxury life, sharing photos of herself and Singh (pictured) on holiday posing next to swimming pools
It said: ‘The safest place for any valuable items, and specifically valuable watches, whilst in the club is either on your person, or stored in the valuable lockers.
‘These valuable lockers are located in the concierge areas and are covered by CCTV. Our changing rooms are not covered by CCTV for obvious reasons, and no valuable items should be left in lockers located there.’
And in January, the fitness chain also warned its users not to reuse PIN codes for lockers and bank cards after a prolific thief targeted multiple sites across the capital.
The alert followed the sentencing of Dean Murphy, 35, who was jailed for two years after admitting three counts of theft and 11 counts of fraud by false representation.
Murphy stole £500 after watching a man enter his locker code at a Third Space gym, before attempting to spend £5,400 at an Apple Store by posing as his victim.
He also used stolen bank cards to withdraw £1,750 from a cash machine and spent £92.06 at Zara.
And in some cases, these criminals operate in pairs.
Last year, the Mail reported how couple Ashley Singh and Sophie Bruyea worked together to target 18 victims, breaking into lockers while gym-goers exercised and stealing bank cards and phones.
The duo took a staggering £250,000 from lockers across London, funding luxury trips to Dubai, Paris and the Amalfi Coast.
One victim, Alina Timofeeva, said the pair spent £10,000 using her card at Harrods and the Apple Store in Covent Garden.
Another, Aseel Mirza, 54, had her wallet, phone, headphones and house keys stolen at a Virgin Active gym, before the thieves took a taxi to Westfield London in Shepherd’s Bush and spent £1,400 in a series of transactions.
Despite victims reporting the crimes, the cases were closed due to a lack of evidence – even though Singh had previously been jailed for six-and-a-half years for similar offences, serving around half his sentence before his release in 2021.
Both Singh and Bruyea have since received further custodial sentences: Singh jailed for three years, while Bruyea was handed a 20-month sentence suspended for two years, alongside a rehabilitation programme and 120 hours of unpaid work.
Virgin Active and Third Space have been contacted for comment.
