A professional thief who targeted City fitness fanatics for their watches is pushing back on a court bid to make him repay his victims – claiming a £500,000 house he lives in is not his.
Paul Hughes, 59, made a living ransacking bank cards and jewellery from the lockers of well-heeled victims as they exercised at private gyms in London‘s Square Mile.
Between July 2024 and March this year, he stole watches worth more than £62,000 from a number of fitness centres in the City.
Today however he claimed to be homeless as a judge scrutinised his living situation while appraising whether he would be able to pay his victims back.
Inner London Crown Court heard today that Hughes was living in a £500,000 home in Coventry but the thief – with previous convictions for fraud and theft – claimed that it belonged to a friend and that he was of ‘no fixed abode’.
Judge Freya Newbery said: ‘On the face of it, there’s £60,000 of expensive goods the victims never got back.
‘And on the face of it, the defendant lives in a detached house in Coventry worth around £500,000 according to internet research.’
Hughes said: ‘That’s my friend’s house. I’m of no fixed abode.’
Paul Hughes – seen here in a recent police mugshot – is facing jail after stealing £62,000 of watches from high-calibre fitness clubs in the City of London
CCTV showed him entering and leaving a changing area with a towel covering his face after making off with a £15,000 watch in February 2025
The judge queried whether that could be ‘bottomed out’ – and suggested that if any of his property could be retrieved in order to compensate victims, he could receive a less severe sentence when he returns to court.
‘If the defendant is able to retrieve any of that property, that would be substantial mitigation,’ she added.
‘What I really want to know is how he’s going to compensate the losers in this case. He can’t just sit on his hands and say “Poor old me”.’
Among the £62,107 of goods he stole, Hughes filched a £15,000 Rolex GMT2 from a locker in a gym in Fenchurch Street in February 2025.
On November 3 last year, he stole another watch, while on February 10 this year, he made off with a wedding ring, wallet, bank cards and driving licence.
The victim of his February filching was Mr Gregory Curtis, whose cards he also used to withdraw cash – for which he admitted a charge of fraud.
Hughes had earlier admitted five further counts of theft, including an £8,000 Rolex, belonging to Toby Gibbs, on 24 July 2024, and a £6,000 Omega Seamaster from another victim on 21 October 2024.
He also stole an £8,000 Rolex Explorer on 7 August 2025 and a £12,000 Rolex Sea Dweller from a customer at The Ned, a members club at Poultry in the City, on 3 November.
Most recently, he swiped a £2,000 Tag Aqua Racer Blackface, a £2,857 18ct platinum and white gold wedding ring, and a £200 Thomas Sabo silver chain from a gym locker on March 10 this year.
Police say he was able to steal some of the goods by spying on members as they entered PIN codes on the gym’s changing room lockers.
A video of him carrying out the Fenchurch Street theft in February last year showed him entering the changing area while using a towel to cover his face; he then left without using any of the facilities.
Hughes, who appeared from HMP Wandsworth in a grey tracksuit, was due to be sentenced today but it has been delayed by an unfinished probation report.
Omar Soliman, defending, said Hughes would offer a ‘detailed explanation’ of his offending to the probation service. A new sentencing date was fixed for 18 June.
Hughes has a long history of targeting the ultra-wealthy at fitness centres.
Alongside an associate, he stole watches worth £11,250 and £4,500 from a boutique health club in Ropemaker Street in the City in August 2015.
Staff recognised him when he returned to the scene a few days later and caught him with a bag of loan agreements for pawning high value watches, a screwdriver, two gym guest passes, and someone else’s driving licence.
He was jailed for 20 months at the Old Bailey in October 2015. He was also jailed for four years at Winchester Crown Court in 2012 after using bank cards he had stolen from gyms in Salisbury and Southampton to help himself to over £30,000.
Police nabbed Hughes for that after discovering his DNA on a wig he had used as part of his disguise.
Police Constable Emilie Cox, of City of London Police, said earlier of his latest spree: ‘Hughes is a prolific offender who deliberately chose to target luxury facilities, accessing the changing rooms and stealing from people’s lockers as they were exercising in the gym.
‘The items he stole were of high value and some of the jewellery was also incredibly sentimental to the victims and unfortunately can never be replaced.
‘People who visit gyms expect their belongings to be safe in their lockers and don’t tend to expect anyone to be looking over their shoulder and stealing their PIN. Unfortunately, we know this is a method used by prolific criminals.’
