A few years ago I got a lesson in the art of Russian pickpocketing when we visited the Hermitage in St. Petersburg. The crowed was so dense inside I couldn't take it and went out to the parking lot to await the rest of the tour group where I had an excellent view of the technique as it was done. A couple of pickpockets would target a tourist, come up quickly from behind and "accidently" jostle him, then quickly move away. By the time the tourist discovered his loss, the pickpockets had melted back into the crowd and were targeting their next victim. I watched it happen three times -quick and slick each time - and no police in sight anywhere in the parking lot.