Anya Hindmarch is hit again

What has the London designer Anya Hindmarch done to deserve such trouble - apart from making some of the world's most coveted handbags? For the fourth time since October, a Hindmarch store has been targeted by smash-and-grab thieves. This time her new shop on Bond Street was hit.

Two thieves - who according to witnesses wore hoodies and arrived on a silver moped - used a sledgehammer to smash in the glass front door (above right). They made off with £30,000 worth of merchandise - not that many handbags given Hindmarch's prices - including the store's star attraction, the new Cooper bag as worn by Angelina Jolie (above left).

Previous raids by the so-called 'It Bag Gang' have targeted Hindmarch's stores on Ledbury Road and Sloane Street. All told, nearly £80,000 worth of merchandise has been stolen. The 40-year-old designer said she was "gobsmacked" by the Bond Street thieves' audacity. "These fearless hoodies ... have absolutely no fear of authority or punishment.

"The complete lack of visible police, who are totally under-resourced, means that even if, like us, you have the best security available, you are constantly vulnerable." She said her stores were particularly vulnerable at the moment because "everybody" had seen photos of Jolie with the Cooper Bag and "wants to get their hands on one".

London detectives believe the 'It Bag Gang' is a loosely linked group of as many as 50 people. Last week a woman and a male accomplice stole handbags worth thousands of pounds each after smashing through the glass door of Salvatore Ferragamo on Bond Street. Since then, four people on scooters have tried to break into Jimmy Choo, but were foiled when electronic security shutters were activated.