This is the shocking moment a thief steals a toddler's phone straight out of his hands in Vietnam.

CCTV footage shows the boy playing on the mobile phone outside his home in Bien Hoa City on April 3.

The boy's mother had given him the phone to play on, according to the child's family.

The thief approaches the boy and remorselessly snatches the phone out of the boy's hands before running away.

The distraught boy looks on and cries after realising what has happened.

The shameless thief had been observing the boy beforehand, according to witnesses.

The man is still at large and police are using the CCTV images to track him down.

The CCTV has captured the moment the man robbed the phone from the little boy in front of the house.

Video captured on April 3, 2018, on Bien Hoa City, Vietnam.

According to the boy's family, His mother gave him the phone to play the game. A robber has observed from afar. Immediately after seeing the boy playing alone. The robber approached and snatched the phone away from the boy. The robber has escaped right after that.

Police are looking for the robber based on camera images.