Pickpockets hired to carry out shady guerrilla campaign in U.K.

If you've ever said, "Hey, that company just picked my pocket!" there's a stunt going on right now in London that should interest you. A mobile phone marketer called Talk Talk has hired a team of 20 "reformed" pickpockets to slip cash into (and not out of) the coats, pants and bags of unsuspecting Brits. The marketer plans to dole out about $200,000 in all, and is planning to expand the program to other cities in the U.K. next month. So, that's a win-win, right? Giving money back to recession-weary consumers and putting those light-fingered vagabonds to work on the right side of the law? Well, the local cops weren't too keen on the street-level marketing at first, figuring it might serve as a cover for real pickpocketing and could upset some folks who'd initially think they'd been fleeced (or felt up). But police have come to terms with it after talking with the advertiser and hearing the testimonial of Chris Fitch, the Fagan in this Oliver Twist-like experiment, who said, "Every time I put money back in someone's pocket, I feel less guilty about the fact I spent many years taking it out." All this and redemption too—that's a multi-purpose campaign.

—Posted by T.L. Stanley