Teenager faces more jail over machete robberies targeting London watch owners

A 19-year-old Algerian teenager has pleaded guilty to a series of armed robberies across London targeting wealthy individuals and public figures. Zacariah Boulares used a machete to steal luxury watches and threatened violence to public figures including singer Aled Jones, whom he told he would decapitate for his £17,000 Rolex. The crimes highlight a systematic pattern of targeting affluent areas in the capital.

Boulares, who was 16 when the robberies began, robbed Mark Turner in Kensington Square Gardens on 9 August 2023 and attempted to rob Dutch executive Neil Tallantire ten days later at a Bayswater Waitrose. He pleaded guilty to robbery and weapon possession charges at Southwark Crown Court in August. The teenager is serving a 22-month sentence imposed in July 2025 for attempting to steal actress Genevieve Chenneour's phone and other offences, and is facing additional jail time for the current convictions. He has accumulated 12 convictions for 28 offences, with a judge noting he had shown a willingness to use violence when challenged.