Ava and the Pickpocket

This is Love

Vox Media Podcast Network

Personal Journals, Society & Culture

4.8 • 9.4K Ratings

🗓️ 5 November 2025

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

“He stole my watch. He stole my jewelry. I stopped wearing jewelry – just to see what else he would steal.” In 2004, Ava Do met a professional pickpocket at a bachelorette party in Las Vegas. And they fell in love. Say hello on ⁠Facebook⁠ and ⁠Instagram⁠. Follow the show and review us on ⁠Apple Podcasts⁠. Want to listen to This is Love ad-free? Sign up for Criminal Plus – you’ll get to listen to This is Love, Criminal, and Phoebe Reads a Mystery without any ads. Plus, you’ll get behind-the-scenes bonus episodes of Criminal and other exclusive benefits. ⁠Learn more and sign up here⁠. We also make ⁠Criminal⁠ and ⁠Phoebe Reads a Mystery⁠. Artwork by ⁠Julienne Alexander⁠. Check out ⁠our online shop⁠. Episode transcripts are posted on ⁠our website⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, it's Phoebe.
0:04.0	This episode today is one we originally made for our other show, Criminal.
0:08.4	It's one of those stories that sometimes come along
0:10.8	that we're not sure whether to make for this is love or criminal,
0:14.2	because it has a little bit of both in it.
0:17.0	So we wanted to share it with you.
0:19.4	We hope you like it.
0:22.9	What was the first magic you learned?
0:26.8	Probably how to tell someone's credit card number without seeing it.
0:32.3	Wait a second. So you could right now tell me my credit card number.
0:36.3	Well, not on radio.
0:38.3	That would be legal.
0:42.3	But you could... Yes.
0:44.4	This is Ava Doe.
0:46.0	For a while in her 20s, she was a pickpocket.
0:50.0	I had stolen a guy's watch on the Vegas strip.
0:55.0	And it was a good three, four minutes after I had stolen it.
1:01.0	And he realized that his watch was missing.
1:04.0	And he was shocked.
1:07.0	So you were practicing on the Las Vegas strip?
1:12.7	Sometimes, but not all the time.
1:14.7	It's very dangerous to do so I wouldn't recommend it.
	...

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