Oliver Twist, an orphan, lives in an orphanage. He runs away to London where he meets the Artful Dodger, a boy who is part of a gang of pickpockets led by an 'old gentleman' named Fagin. Oliver is unfairly blamed for the robbery of an elderly gentleman, Mr. Brownlow. After learning of Oliver's innocence, Brownlow rescues him and takes him in, but the criminal gang plots to get him back.