In April of 2022, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc became a victim of a robbery after his watch got stolen in Italy. A year has passed since then, and it seems as though Leclerc has learned a valuable lesson after the scary incident.
Leclerc has always been known for stopping to take pictures with his fans and sign autographs. Some, however, decided to take advantage of how nice he was. Two unidentified men on motorcycles, posed as fans and snatched the Ferrari driver’s watch in the Italian city of Viareggio. Leclerc was sporting a customized Richard Mille RM 67-02 valued at $320,000.
The F1 driver embarked on a highspeed pursuit, chasing the thieves in his Ferrari 488 Pista to retrieve his valuable watch. The trauma in the aftermath of his incident must have forced Leclerc to become more cautious about his valuables as he was seen guarding an expensive watch in a recent video.
Charles Leclerc was seen hiding his watch while meeting fans
Being Ferrari’s golden boy, Charles Leclerc is loved by fans of the prancing horse worldwide. Leclerc, being a Ferrari fan himself, usually stops to sign pictures and memorabilia given by his admirers, and also to take pictures with them.
However, a recent video shows the 5-time race-winning driver closely guarding his valuable Richard Mille watch. While interacting with fans in Barcelona, Leclerc can be seen unbuckling his watch and keeping it in his pocket.
charles be like “yeah, i’m not chasing thieves again, imma hide this watch” 😭💀 pic.twitter.com/9ftB5gZCqi
— clara (@leclercsletters) June 12, 2023
A fan ‘leclerc1644’ responded, “The poor thing is traumatized,” following Leclerc’s experience after being robbed. While user ‘Iamstewwpid‘ wrote, “Bro really said I ain’t playing no batman again,” owing to the driver’s epic chase.
the poor thing is traumatized https://t.co/sKrubsvlEJ
— joana (@leclerc1644) June 12, 2023
Bro really said I ain’t playing no batman again 😂😂😂 https://t.co/qbQzB6CnFG
— Fatima (@Iamstewwpid) June 12, 2023
Lando Norris and Sebastian Vettel fell victim to robberies
After the robbery involving Leclerc, Italian police arrested four people suspected of being involved in it. The police have also released CCTV footage of Leclerc chasing the bandits on his Ferrari 488 Pista.
In a video shared by KSAT 12, the Ferrari driver can be seen tailing two people on a motorbike and being followed by an SUV. The police have retrieved a watch from the gang. However, they have not confirmed if the timepiece belongs to the Monegasque.
Lando Norris was also a victim of a watch robbery. The incident happened when the McLaren driver attended the Euro 2020 final in London’s Wembley Stadium. The driver was placed under a headlock as his Richard Mille watch was stolen from his hand.
Thieves even targeted 4x champion Sebastian Vettel by stealing his bag containing his documents and AirPods. However, the German managed to outsmart the thieves by tracking his AirPods down.
Leclerc hiding his watch in Barcelona is a clear indication that F1 drivers don’t feel safe around the public anymore. They take extra steps to make sure they along with their valuables, remain safe.
