So sorry to hear of this!
The talent of the pickpocket is much like the illusionist--get the people focused on something else while they enact their plan without being noticed. The guy probably worked down his routine practicing it over and over again... as one hand makes a quick move for the inside pocket (he probably observed how your jacket was sagging slightly on one side, indicating a smart phone), while the other hand impacts firmly in a place that will startle you, causing you to shift focus to that and not even realize what the other hand had just done.
This is why it is SO important to button up your pockets with valuables. Granted, the more professional pickpockets know how to deal with those, but the chances of being caught are much greater. I knew a guy who worked in the police force and they learned how pickpockets work. Some even carry a specially designed hidden razor that allows them to cut a button off quickly, without much of a tug at all.
Lastly, with a new smart phone that has high value, it's best to put an electronic RFID chip on it that will set off an alarm on your key chain when the phone is beyond a certain distance.
Anyway... the iPhone tracer function is very useful and hopefully you'll eventually get the phone back and without any damage.
just call yourself and leave this message
Ummm... no. "I will kill you" is the wrong approach. You DO want them to know you have money and you'll pay him $200 to get it back. No resale risk and hassle for him this way--quick money. You just want your phone back. Arrange a meeting place in public. Of course, you can plan things to be not so innocent. Definitely have a buddy as backup, if you can't get the police to assist you on this. Anyway, none of this will work if he can't break the phone code. And of course a hard reset means he can't get access to your voice mail, so leaving a message won't accomplish anything.Sephiroth said:just call yourself and leave this message
"I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills; skills I have acquired over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you return my phone now, that’ll be the end of it. I will not look for you, I will not pursue you. But if you don’t, I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you."
me thinks you don't get the reference. Watch the movie "Taken".