[Closed] Another Stolen Bike Spotted In Southmead

Good news, there is an officer at Southmead who has been put in charge of investigating bike crime in the city, he called me this afternoon. This is part of the Cycling City initiative I think, and long overdue.

I wont give anymore details at this stage, but he is interested in meeting Bristol riders who have posted on here concerning thefts, and gather some ideas on prevention and possibly how to catch these people. It was refreshing to speak to someone who agrees this type of crime is now organised in Bristol. He has been reading this board over the past weeks and is a mountain biker himself.

Unfortunately, having had 5 bikes nicked this year, I was presumably near the top of his list to speak to....

Fingers crossed for some progress.

Some of the kerbs up that way are quite rough and steep... probably warrants a bike of that magnitude 😉 I expect downhillers at Knowle West but not Southmead because it's flat there 😉

@agentdagnamit

Any chance of passing on an email for this guy? I recently lost some bikes in north Bristol.

I’m the officer that spoke with agentdagnamit concerning his personal experiences of being the victim of bike thefts. Along with a number of other officers and interested parties we are exploring and implementing a multitude of different tactics and measures to prevent and detect cycle theft within Bristol.

I have a particular interest in addressing the theft of mountain bikes from houses/garages.

In respect of ‘harry too’s’ comments I will brief the uniform teams and the Beat Manager for Pen Park Road and request targeted patrols in that area. I’ve located the crime report and will circulate the attached pictures of the bikes to aid the officers out and about.

This will be an evolving process and no doubt there will be more from me to follow in the future.

I’m interested in any constructive comments/ideas that people might have on the matter and can be E-mailed at Lawrence.jones@avonandsomerset.police.uk or at larryj@hotmail.co.uk.

Had I not been scouring this site the above information may not have come to light. I’m grateful for harry too’s post but if you see anything suspicious, whether it be on Ebay or in the street always report it, either directly to the police or via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or the website.

All the best & regards,

Larry.

Good stuff. I've phoned Psyclewerx, the local Nicolai dealer, and they reckon they can match an owner to the bike (they've only sold one bike matching that description, and it was stolen last year) and have the chap's contact details somewhere.

While I'm posting, another possible stolen bike spotted in the Bedminster/Southville area:

http://stolenbristolbikes.blogspot.com/2009/06/inbred-with-pikes.html

Mr Agreeable,

YGM.

Larry

Great to have you involved with STW and credit to you and the local force for doing so. I'm London based but can't believe the number of posts on here that report bikes being stolen in and around Bristol.

I wish you the best of luck.

Smurf

Congrats to Bristol and Larry for an onset of common sense policing!

Is there a scheme to mark bikes in Bristol?
There used to be one back home (warwickshire) but it involved using letter punches to punch/engrave a code into the Bottom Bracket shell and frankly anyone who comes near my bike with a hammer and some letter punches is going to get more than they bargained for!

But how about the old indelible UV pen trick - mark it somewhere it won't wash or wear off (say 1" inside the bar ends) with either a postcode, name or even just a number etc. and then when Larry and his colleagues collars some little scrote... er... suspect... in Southmead etc. whip the bar end off shine the hand held UV pen up it and bob's your uncle proof of who's bike it is.

The police could have a list of the codes etc. that are nicked along with a pic.

Am I stating the bleedin obvious and it's already being done?

Badger

(I don't live anywhere near Bristol but do visit to ride there occasionally so just interested in less bikes getting nicked. Besides maybe my local police force (er..sorry, police "service"...) will pick up on the good example that Larry seems to be setting.)

I've been thinking of adding some theft prevention/bike recovery advice to the site, any suggestions?

For theft prevention, there's a really good little article on [url= http://www.bikeworkshop.co.uk/bikes/advice-bike-security.html ]Bristol Bike Workshop[/url]'s website which I will probably borrow.

For recovery, I was thinking

-Serial numbers - frame and forks (marking your bike as Badger suggests seems a bit OTT when it already has a unique number on it)
-Photos
-Descriptions
-Putting the word out on forums, blogs etc
-Register with Immobilise.com (free to use stolen property register)
-Checking eBay, Gumtree, Trade It etc.
-Reporting suspicious bikes to the police.

I've been a victim of Bristol bike theft.

I've wondered about a registration scheme with the local police service - photo, frame number, brief description. So that when or if bike is stolen there is a collection of evidence linking you with the bike and something for the police to work on. With a description and a frame number it might be easy for the police to stop and examine a suspect bike and exclude as necessary.

Also, as above. Get ebay to insist that frame numbers are explicitly recorded in any advert for bike or frame sale.

I know there have been initiatives where police go to peoples houses to offer advice about burglary prevention - perhaps something similar wrt garages/shed security. I know i have put in a considerable amount of new security - only time will tell if it is effective

I posted links to lock and chain tests on this forum - unfortunalty i was met with ridicule!?!?!? We all should agree that prevention is better than cure in respect of theft of our own property. A co-ordinated approach would be good. Maybe the police could use thier experience and resources to address preventative measures, including methods used by the theives etc and make a flyer and distribute them in Bristol Bike shops. Bike shops would benefit too i'd imagine as they'll sell more high end locks, ground anchors etc..... Sorry if you've already done this?

I agree with all the above measures and would like to add another observation. These things are vitally important to avoid the theft happening in the first place but additionally it is vital that the Police / Judicial system are given the powers to trully punish those who are convicted of the theft. By trully punish I ask no more than for the ofender to pay back / return the bike ... we must go further than a few hours of community service. This will not sort out the problem in the mid to long term.

This is an issue very close to my heart since I am a victim of this crime (be it in another European country) and was fortunate enough to track down the thief and have an admission but yet cannot seem to get the value of my property back.

I've also been a victim of bike theft in bristol, and was fortunate that the Police recovered it as part of another investigation.

Marking of the major components would have assisted in recovery / identification as the ###kers had swapped components and attempted to erase the bikes idfentity

to add insult to injury they also used a pressure washer and managed to destroy all the frame bearings on a spesh epic + hubs, BB and headset + blow water past the seals on front and rear shocks