Jenson Button’s wife doesn’t want to return to UK after thief steals items worth £250,000

Jenson Button’s wife Brittny Ward says she is not interested in returning to the UK after a thief stole items worth £250,000 from her in London.

Ward, who is an interior designer and real estate investor, was returning from a holiday with Button in Paris when a thief snatched her suitcase outside St Pancras station in central London.

Former Formula 1 star Button was also present and had just loaded his own luggage in the front seat of the chauffeur’s car when the robber came swooping for Ward’s belongings.

Ward revealed that the suitcase contained two Kelly bags worth more than £70,000 as well as antique jewellery from her wedding and her daughter’s birth.

Thankfully, the suspect was arrested a few days later by officers wearing plain clothes and has been identified as Mourad Aid.

“The 41-year-old pleaded guilty to the crime at Westminster Magistrates Court, five days after the incident took place.

The ordeal left a sour taste in the mouth of Ward, who vowed not to return to the UK in the future.

Although Button was born and brought up in Britain, he and his wife Ward live in Calabasas, California along with their two children.

"I was kind of shocked,” Ward told MailOnline. “How like unsecure everything felt [in London] just so many people, [and] so chaotic."

“I don't really have many things from my parents, I don't really have many family heirlooms and I wish I did. So it's really heartbreaking.”

“I'm normally pretty cautious when I'm out in public and travelling, but I just didn't think that there were gangs literally just waiting for people and watching.

“My husband and I, we really have no interest going back to the UK and it's a shame, because, you know, we will have to go back for family and work.

“It just feels so unsafe and doesn't feel how it once was, and it's just unfortunate because that's where my children's grandmother and aunts live.”

Speaking about the incident, British Transport Police Detective Sergeant Marc Farmer said: “This was a brazen and opportunistic theft by a man who took advantage of the victim and her husband having their backs turned for a matter of seconds while loading up their car with luggage.

“He was able to quickly swipe the suitcase without them even noticing, which hammers home just how sneaky these sorts of criminals really are and why it’s so important to keep one eye on your belongings at all times.

“While the incident wasn’t captured on CCTV, we were still able to trace Aid through other investigative opportunities, and he was arrested by our plain clothes officers just days later.”