Police warn Amsterdam food delivery drivers of rise in pizza thefts

Amsterdam has seen a rise in robberies targeting food delivery drivers. The workers are being picked out by groups of youngsters not for their money or bicycles, but for the pizza they are transporting. 

Youngsters in Amsterdam rob pizza delivery drivers

Has your food delivery not made its way to you recently? The reason could be due to a new trend that has kicked off among youngsters in Amsterdam Zuid-Oost: pizza heists. Groups of underage children have been threatening food delivery drivers for their pizza orders. 

“They are really only interested in the pizzas, not in money or other food that couriers carry,” a police spokesperson told Het Parool. “The picture we have at the moment is that it involves young people operating in varying groups.” 

Dutch police have arrested a total of six such minors for stealing pizzas from food delivery drivers. Just last week, a group of four youngsters were caught red-handed in a basement storage unit, eating their freshly stolen pizza after a bystander directed the police there. 

Domino’s considering bodycams for delivery drivers

Delivery drivers for both New York Pizza and Domino’s have been targeted on different occasions. The former has even adjusted opening hours and changed payment methods to not accept cash to improve the safety of drivers.

Domino’s is also looking into equipping its delivery drivers with bodycams as an additional measure. “The safety of our delivery drivers is our highest priority. That is why we operate cashless: drivers do not carry cash. In addition, our drivers are equipped with GPS tracking,” said a spokesperson.

The police are taking the robberies very seriously and are closely monitoring the situation. “Although it may sound relatively harmless, every robbery has an impact on victims. Delivery drivers feel unsafe on the street and business owners bear the costs,” said the police.