12 ms·

A deep dive on a Facebook reseller of bikes stolen in Colorado

324 points by epa 5y ago

walrus01 5y ago
I can't say that I'm familiar with bikeindex, it seems to be generally the same idea as 529 garage which is much more commonly used in BC/WA/OR/CA. https://project529.com/garage https://project529.com/garage Donations to 529 are encouraged and you can buy their sticker, but you can also register your new bike for free just by taking a few photos of it, your bill of sale, and its serial number (typically embossed into the bottom bracket somewhere). Takes a max of 5-10 minutes to do to set up new account and register a bike. I am loathe to recommend the use of Facebook for anything, but people in the metro Vancouver area have taken it on themselves to create a group called Stolen Bikes Vancouver which has successfully crowdsourced the location and return of bikes to some people. It's at least better than doing nothing, in the almost total lack of law enforcement cooperation. https://www.facebook.com/groups/stolenbike604// https://www.facebook.com/groups/stolenbike604//
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- softbuilder 5y ago
  Bike Index is very well known at least in OR/WA (I'm in PDX) and has been around a long time. I appreciate you're supportive of another effort but you don't need to push one effort down to lift another up.
  - walrus01 5y ago
    I don't see where I said anything disparaging bikeindex, it certainly can't hurt to register a bike or search on both sites. My comment was a one person sample size anecdote of what I've commonly seen used on the west coast.
    - softbuilder 5y ago
      > it seems to be generally the same idea as 529 garage which is much more commonly used in BC/WA/OR/CA. This read (to me) as "sure, but the REAL thing is over here", stated as authoritative fact, not a one person sample size anecdote.
      - walrus01 5y ago
        interestingly both sites want to claim to be the single authoritative source of data, and place to register and search for stolen bikes, but the "market" for such online services is really split between the two... or maybe there's a 3rd online bike registry I'm totally unaware of as well? from the bikeindex faq (https://bikeindex.org/help https://bikeindex.org/help): ===== Right now people with good intentions buy stolen bikes because there isn't a single searchable, simple resource to check before buying a bike. Bike Index is that resource. The next time you buy a used bike, check the Index first. ===== 529 garage also would seem to present as if it is the only source of data... https://project529.com/garage/faq/en/ https://project529.com/garage/faq/en/ in reality I think the data is split between the two sites. My bike is registered on 529, this has provided motivation to me to also submit the same photos/data to bikeindex for a belt and suspenders type approach.
        jvolkman 5y ago
        Didn't think I'd be spending part of my Saturday reading about drama in the world of bike tracking, but - According to this page, project529 uses bikeindex's stolen bike reports in its own listings, but doesn't share its data with bikeindex. https://bicyclesecurityadvisors.com/protect-your-bike/index-your-bike/ https://bicyclesecurityadvisors.com/protect-your-bike/index-...
        walrus01 5y ago
        I was surprised by the table showing 177,000 listings for one and 700,000 listings in the other. Ideally they could both share data and mirror each other for both registrations and stolen bike listings, for the most effective use by people who may be unaware of the other entity.
  - jacquesm 5y ago
    I see no pushing down.
- throwaway82931 5y ago
  > I am loathe to recommend the use of Facebook for anything, but [...] It's at least better than doing nothing Is it? A central theme of the article is how Facebook is facilitating bike theft by providing essential electronic storefront space, and that you can't get Facebook to take down such storefronts.
  - walrus01 5y ago
    yes, though as facebook seems to be a lowest-common-denominator method of social media communications for many people, even if they use it rarely, I am not aware of any other 4000 person group for sharing stolen bike information in that specific city. simultaneously you've got stolen bike sales going on within the facebook marketplace and also a group of people trying to find/recover their stolen bikes.
  - gs17 5y ago
    > and that you can't get Facebook to take down such storefronts. This really surprised me given the difficulty I had with Facebook Marketplace incorrectly taking down my listings and refusing to put them back up (one was an empty aquarium, taken down for selling "live animals").
    - yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
      The remarkable thing about modern online platforms that have zero accountability or customer service is that they somehow manage to have an alarmingly high false positive rate and false negative rate at the same time. It remains unclear to me if this is inevitable at their scale, or simply that they really are that bad.
- sethherr 5y ago
  Donate to Bike Index! We’re more widely used everywhere except for Vancouver. Also, we wrote this article! And Bike Index is a non profit, so it makes sense to donate to us, rather than a for profit company. https://bikeindex.org/donate https://bikeindex.org/donate
throwaway82931 5y ago
> Ideally, this article would hopefully help de-platform this seller off of Facebook, but we aren't holding our breath on that one. Facebook is basically terrible about this, and their existing mechanisms for dealing with reporting sellers like this simply don't work. > [...] > There is no button to click where you can explain to anybody at FB "this is a repeat seller of bikes stolen in Colorado, and here's our proof, and here's our contact info." etc. It is almost as if their system for reporting stolen goods is designed not to work. So "storefront for stolen goods" is another way Facebook makes our lives worse.
- g8oz 5y ago
  In the 2000s Craigslist was threatened by a coalition of 40 state attorneys general into policing their sex ads....Facebook will need something similar.
  - lotsofpulp 5y ago
    I would rather the government do their job and police and prosecute illegal acts.
    - throwaway82931 5y ago
      Like prosecuting Facebook for colluding in the sale of stolen property?
      - Calvin02 5y ago
        I'm genuinely curious. How would you propose Facebook enforce this? People selling bikes include both first-hand buyers and second-hand buyers (people who bought it from someone else). Without a central registry like what we have for cars, I don't know what Facebook could do.
        8note 5y ago
        Disallow selling bikes. If you can't figure out a way to only allow legal resales, you shouldn't be in the business
georgeoliver 5y ago
This is a great article. The resale prices of the bikes are also interesting (in the mid 4 figures USD range), considering the per capita income of Mexico vs the USA.
- School-Cotton 5y ago
  There are plenty of people in Mexico that have that kind of disposable income. Fewer than in the US, sure, but Mexico is a rich country by global standards and its wealth is very unequally distributed.
dannylandau 5y ago
I'm from Boulder Colorado, and had 2 bikes stolen as a teenager. So, this touches very close to home.
soared 5y ago
I'm going to put some of the blame on the Denver government/police for this, but not for a lack of enforcement. If your bike is impounded or stolen and recovered it is nearly impossible to retrieve it. You cannot call to see if it was picked up. You cannot look for it online. You have to show up to their sketchy office during business hours, wait in line, and ask the guy to go look through all the bikes and try to find yours. With hundreds of bikes it almost certainly will not be found. The government auctions off some of the bikes and gives or sells the rest of the bikes to charity. Two years ago my bike was locked in a location it should not have been downtown along with many other bikes. When I came back to find my bike missing the police officer said all of the bikes were impounded. I called around, went to the impound place twice.. but my bike was never found. In short, great investigation work by bike index. But their efforts are hindered by the city.
- hetspookjee 5y ago
  Yet Facebook earns money of this illegal business, no? Just like their practice with the Amazon land plots they catered to buyers. The list of illegal things that Facebook facilitates in return of profits is endless and just banning the city is too short-sighted in my view.
- ajsnigrutin 5y ago
  Don't bikes have serial numbers? How hard is it to just publish the list of "found" and imponded bikes, that everyone can see?
  - enjo 5y ago
    They use the serial number as a means to identify that you are actually the owner. Denver has a system where if you register you bike with the city and your bike is found they'll notify you.
    - bhance 5y ago
      ... and this serial-search system is closed to the public, whereas Bike index makes this possible to everybody.
bhance 5y ago
Hello. Article author here. Hit me up if anybody has questions.
- bndw 5y ago
  Awesome work, glad you guys are still at it.
- bhance 5y ago
  Guess I'll just run with this: Since this article was published, here's what has transpired My inbox became: a) various cyclists in Mexico giving me more info b) new victims who have read the article, identifying their stolen bikes in this guy's sales that we posted, including commercial shop robberies c) people sending copies of his "official message" to his clients he posted, in which he denies the claims we make and essentially calls us liars, etc and asks for his customers support After that, Mexican Cycling FB picked it up. FWIW Mex cycling folks are awesome, we had some really good input and comms with folks in that community. For about 24 hours the store would remove any negative comments from their page from cyclists and/or customers, far as we could tell, and all his customers were chiming in how much of a great shop he was with great deals and great service. Nobody would address the proof we posted of stolen in his sales. As of an hour ago (?) or so the guys page is now gone.
- bryannn 5y ago
  Really interesting find. I had previously seen suspicion that this exact thing was happening. Were these Guerilla Gravity bikes linked to the showroom burglary that happened earlier this year? Also, could you please try to get this posted on Pinkbike/VitalMTB? Would like to see this shared on other common bike sites.
  - bhance 5y ago
    Yes, those GG bikes are confirmed. And yes its on PB somewhere in the forums. And many Colorado FB groups, which is how new victims which we knew nothing about are now trickling in. Please spread it wherever you can.
  - bhance 5y ago
spamizbad 5y ago
Tons of boosted goods land on Facebook Marketplace. It's also where shoplifting rings tend to dump their goods.
agumonkey 5y ago
Who here uses trackers ? apparently there are lorawan based modules with included data plan and a phone app for less than 100$
- UncleEntity 5y ago
  One of the apple iTags would probably work pretty well I would think. Attach with GorillaGlue++ so they have to seriously degrade the value of the bike for extra points.
71a54xd 5y ago
The amount of this behavior on eBay is also pretty stunning, however the rules that have been proposed to curve this basically stand to completely destroy secondary markets which is horrible for single use electronics consumption and the environment in general.
literallyaduck 5y ago
Facebook should be held to the same standards as pawnshops.
- bhance 5y ago
  also Offerup. Please, please please.
- School-Cotton 5y ago
  What standards are pawnshops held to?
  - bhance 5y ago
    Here is just one example https://www.portland.gov/code/14/b90 https://www.portland.gov/code/14/b90 check out "14B.90.080 Reporting of Secondhand Dealer Transactions" details differ by state and city, but the gist is "electronic records of serials are transmitted to law enforcement" etc. Also items are held for a while, not sold immediately.
windows2020 5y ago
In early high school, we'd ride bikes to the local coffee shop, lean them against the big windows out front and hangout. Somehow, no one noticed when mine was snatched one evening. I was pretty devastated. My grandfather drove me around the town the next day to see if I could spot it. When we were about to give up, I noticed a bike leaning along side a house near the shop. I could see it from the street. It looked exactly like mine. It had the same replacement seat and even a curly bike lock coiled around the handlebars on the same side I left it. But it had been hastily spray pained. We called the police, they arrived and a kid inside noticed the commotion and came out. They had found the bike at the shop and took it. I went to inspect it. I was very surprised when I found the small yard behind the house was packed with around fifty bikes. To the cop, I said something like, "there's tons of bikes back here!" I then remembered another friend had theirs stolen as well. He didn't look for himself, and said I couldn't just take the bike. There was no proof it was mine. So, I said, "what if I can unlock the bike lock?" I could and was allowed to take it, but it had been ruined. My prized shiny bike had been banged up and spray painted. The following week my mother read me a letter that had arrived. The town would not be prosecuting the kid. I was confused. I did nothing wrong and stayed out of trouble myself. Did their actions not warrant any consequences? My mother ended up going to the police department and insisting the town prosecute, which they ended up doing. I'm not sure what happened. Did the consequences dissuade them from stealing a 51st bike? Their family had failed them, would their community? If not for religion, what hope did they have?
- tomcam 5y ago
  If your mom is still around, please thank her for me. Seriously, that was an amazing thing she did.
- theturtletalks 5y ago
  Had my bike stolen twice out of my garage and the first thing I did was file a police report with the color and brand. Write down your serial number if you have a bike and so you can provide that as well. I knew the police would not really look for a bike so I scoured Craigslist, OfferUp, and Facebook Marketplace. Eventually I found the bike both times. I messaged the person to meet up, called the police, and provided my report number and the listing. The police met up the people and got my bike back twice. What happened to the thieves that stole my bike twice and broke my expensive locks? Absolutely nothing. When I asked the cop why they weren't cited or charged, he said they were fences. Guess if you're a fence, you can get away with selling stolen goods because you can claim you thought you bought the item legitimately. I'm sure those fences were selling other people's bikes as well, but cops didn't do anything. The deterrence for small crimes is slowly falling as thieves are realizing that the cops are not punishing thieves even after catching them red-handed.
mfashby 5y ago
TFA reminded me to go register my own bike, which I had forgotten to do. I also registered at bikeregister.com which is linked from the UK police.
slim 5y ago
Off topic, but classic film to watch : Ladri di bicyclette, by Vittorio de Sica https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040522/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040522/
0cVlTeIATBs 5y ago
I looked to see if they have been sentenced, but instead found this about the fence of the group: "Adrian Rocha Chairez is charged with 31 felony counts including racketeering. Police say he headed up an organized crime ring responsible for more than a million dollars in damaged property and stolen cars and bikes. He was indicted in Denver, where a judge set bond at $500,000. A Boulder judge knocked it down to $10,000. He walked out even after prosecutors noted he had weapons and ties to Mexico." [0] https://denver.cbslocal.com/2021/12/08/boulder-pr-bonds-murray-district-attorney/ https://denver.cbslocal.com/2021/12/08/boulder-pr-bonds-murr...
- denton-scratch 5y ago
  > and ties to Mexico That sounds like enough reason on its own to lock the dude up, right? Would the bond reduction be OK if the guy had ties to (say) Scotland?
  - eloff 5y ago
    The difference is it's easy to skip bond and run off to Mexico, and hard to get them back from there afterwards. Not the same at all with Scotland.
    - denton-scratch 5y ago
      OIC. I thought someone on bail couldn't cross the border.
      - eloff 5y ago
        Unfortunately the Mexican border is somewhat porous.
- starwind 5y ago
  Hoo boy, this one's good (from the same article): "Police suspect Savuth and Yulisa Yin in the death and cover-up of a Longmont real estate broker. They’re charged with stealing $3 million in property from him. They were let out on $500 cash bonds each, even after prosecutors presented evidence that they planned to leave the country." That's Boulder for you
mikotodomo 5y ago
Wow, I didn't know it's possible to nerd out so hard on bike theft.
- GaylordTuring 5y ago
  Nerds find a way. Which is a good thing, by the way!
  - mikotodomo 5y ago
    :)
xyst 5y ago
off topic: some of these bike brands I have never heard of but they look impressive. The zerode brand has particularly caught my eye. Would it be a waste of money to use these strictly on roads?
citizenpaul 5y ago
Who is buying a $5000 bike from Mexico for a 10% discount. Seems like a lot of risk for a very minor discount on an very expensive item with no warranty. It makes me suspicious there is even more to the story than the author was able to dig into.

324 points by epa 5y ago

I can't say that I'm familiar with bikeindex, it seems to be generally the same idea as 529 garage which is much more commonly used in BC/WA/OR/CA. https://project529.com/garage https://project529.com/garage Donations to 529 are encouraged and you can buy their sticker, but you can also register your new bike for free just by taking a few photos of it, your bill of sale, and its serial number (typically embossed into the bottom bracket somewhere). Takes a max of 5-10 minutes to do to set up new account and register a bike. I am loathe to recommend the use of Facebook for anything, but people in the metro Vancouver area have taken it on themselves to create a group called Stolen Bikes Vancouver which has successfully crowdsourced the location and return of bikes to some people. It's at least better than doing nothing, in the almost total lack of law enforcement cooperation. https://www.facebook.com/groups/stolenbike604// https://www.facebook.com/groups/stolenbike604//

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
softbuilder 5y ago
Bike Index is very well known at least in OR/WA (I'm in PDX) and has been around a long time. I appreciate you're supportive of another effort but you don't need to push one effort down to lift another up.
- walrus01 5y ago
  I don't see where I said anything disparaging bikeindex, it certainly can't hurt to register a bike or search on both sites. My comment was a one person sample size anecdote of what I've commonly seen used on the west coast.
  - softbuilder 5y ago
    > it seems to be generally the same idea as 529 garage which is much more commonly used in BC/WA/OR/CA. This read (to me) as "sure, but the REAL thing is over here", stated as authoritative fact, not a one person sample size anecdote.
    - walrus01 5y ago
      interestingly both sites want to claim to be the single authoritative source of data, and place to register and search for stolen bikes, but the "market" for such online services is really split between the two... or maybe there's a 3rd online bike registry I'm totally unaware of as well? from the bikeindex faq (https://bikeindex.org/help https://bikeindex.org/help): ===== Right now people with good intentions buy stolen bikes because there isn't a single searchable, simple resource to check before buying a bike. Bike Index is that resource. The next time you buy a used bike, check the Index first. ===== 529 garage also would seem to present as if it is the only source of data... https://project529.com/garage/faq/en/ https://project529.com/garage/faq/en/ in reality I think the data is split between the two sites. My bike is registered on 529, this has provided motivation to me to also submit the same photos/data to bikeindex for a belt and suspenders type approach.
      - jvolkman 5y ago
        Didn't think I'd be spending part of my Saturday reading about drama in the world of bike tracking, but - According to this page, project529 uses bikeindex's stolen bike reports in its own listings, but doesn't share its data with bikeindex. https://bicyclesecurityadvisors.com/protect-your-bike/index-your-bike/ https://bicyclesecurityadvisors.com/protect-your-bike/index-...
        walrus01 5y ago
        I was surprised by the table showing 177,000 listings for one and 700,000 listings in the other. Ideally they could both share data and mirror each other for both registrations and stolen bike listings, for the most effective use by people who may be unaware of the other entity.
- jacquesm 5y ago
  I see no pushing down.
throwaway82931 5y ago
> I am loathe to recommend the use of Facebook for anything, but [...] It's at least better than doing nothing Is it? A central theme of the article is how Facebook is facilitating bike theft by providing essential electronic storefront space, and that you can't get Facebook to take down such storefronts.
- walrus01 5y ago
  yes, though as facebook seems to be a lowest-common-denominator method of social media communications for many people, even if they use it rarely, I am not aware of any other 4000 person group for sharing stolen bike information in that specific city. simultaneously you've got stolen bike sales going on within the facebook marketplace and also a group of people trying to find/recover their stolen bikes.
- gs17 5y ago
  > and that you can't get Facebook to take down such storefronts. This really surprised me given the difficulty I had with Facebook Marketplace incorrectly taking down my listings and refusing to put them back up (one was an empty aquarium, taken down for selling "live animals").
  - yjftsjthsd-h 5y ago
    The remarkable thing about modern online platforms that have zero accountability or customer service is that they somehow manage to have an alarmingly high false positive rate and false negative rate at the same time. It remains unclear to me if this is inevitable at their scale, or simply that they really are that bad.
sethherr 5y ago
Donate to Bike Index! We’re more widely used everywhere except for Vancouver. Also, we wrote this article! And Bike Index is a non profit, so it makes sense to donate to us, rather than a for profit company. https://bikeindex.org/donate https://bikeindex.org/donate

throwaway82931 5y ago

> Ideally, this article would hopefully help de-platform this seller off of Facebook, but we aren't holding our breath on that one. Facebook is basically terrible about this, and their existing mechanisms for dealing with reporting sellers like this simply don't work. > [...] > There is no button to click where you can explain to anybody at FB "this is a repeat seller of bikes stolen in Colorado, and here's our proof, and here's our contact info." etc. It is almost as if their system for reporting stolen goods is designed not to work. So "storefront for stolen goods" is another way Facebook makes our lives worse.

g8oz 5y ago
In the 2000s Craigslist was threatened by a coalition of 40 state attorneys general into policing their sex ads....Facebook will need something similar.
- lotsofpulp 5y ago
  I would rather the government do their job and police and prosecute illegal acts.
  - throwaway82931 5y ago
    Like prosecuting Facebook for colluding in the sale of stolen property?
    - Calvin02 5y ago
      I'm genuinely curious. How would you propose Facebook enforce this? People selling bikes include both first-hand buyers and second-hand buyers (people who bought it from someone else). Without a central registry like what we have for cars, I don't know what Facebook could do.
      - 8note 5y ago
        Disallow selling bikes. If you can't figure out a way to only allow legal resales, you shouldn't be in the business

georgeoliver 5y ago

This is a great article. The resale prices of the bikes are also interesting (in the mid 4 figures USD range), considering the per capita income of Mexico vs the USA.

School-Cotton 5y ago
There are plenty of people in Mexico that have that kind of disposable income. Fewer than in the US, sure, but Mexico is a rich country by global standards and its wealth is very unequally distributed.

dannylandau 5y ago

I'm from Boulder Colorado, and had 2 bikes stolen as a teenager. So, this touches very close to home.

soared 5y ago

I'm going to put some of the blame on the Denver government/police for this, but not for a lack of enforcement. If your bike is impounded or stolen and recovered it is nearly impossible to retrieve it. You cannot call to see if it was picked up. You cannot look for it online. You have to show up to their sketchy office during business hours, wait in line, and ask the guy to go look through all the bikes and try to find yours. With hundreds of bikes it almost certainly will not be found. The government auctions off some of the bikes and gives or sells the rest of the bikes to charity. Two years ago my bike was locked in a location it should not have been downtown along with many other bikes. When I came back to find my bike missing the police officer said all of the bikes were impounded. I called around, went to the impound place twice.. but my bike was never found. In short, great investigation work by bike index. But their efforts are hindered by the city.

hetspookjee 5y ago
Yet Facebook earns money of this illegal business, no? Just like their practice with the Amazon land plots they catered to buyers. The list of illegal things that Facebook facilitates in return of profits is endless and just banning the city is too short-sighted in my view.
ajsnigrutin 5y ago
Don't bikes have serial numbers? How hard is it to just publish the list of "found" and imponded bikes, that everyone can see?
- enjo 5y ago
  They use the serial number as a means to identify that you are actually the owner. Denver has a system where if you register you bike with the city and your bike is found they'll notify you.
  - bhance 5y ago
    ... and this serial-search system is closed to the public, whereas Bike index makes this possible to everybody.

bhance 5y ago

Hello. Article author here. Hit me up if anybody has questions.

bndw 5y ago
Awesome work, glad you guys are still at it.
bhance 5y ago
Guess I'll just run with this: Since this article was published, here's what has transpired My inbox became: a) various cyclists in Mexico giving me more info b) new victims who have read the article, identifying their stolen bikes in this guy's sales that we posted, including commercial shop robberies c) people sending copies of his "official message" to his clients he posted, in which he denies the claims we make and essentially calls us liars, etc and asks for his customers support After that, Mexican Cycling FB picked it up. FWIW Mex cycling folks are awesome, we had some really good input and comms with folks in that community. For about 24 hours the store would remove any negative comments from their page from cyclists and/or customers, far as we could tell, and all his customers were chiming in how much of a great shop he was with great deals and great service. Nobody would address the proof we posted of stolen in his sales. As of an hour ago (?) or so the guys page is now gone.
bryannn 5y ago
Really interesting find. I had previously seen suspicion that this exact thing was happening. Were these Guerilla Gravity bikes linked to the showroom burglary that happened earlier this year? Also, could you please try to get this posted on Pinkbike/VitalMTB? Would like to see this shared on other common bike sites.
- bhance 5y ago
  Yes, those GG bikes are confirmed. And yes its on PB somewhere in the forums. And many Colorado FB groups, which is how new victims which we knew nothing about are now trickling in. Please spread it wherever you can.
- bhance 5y ago

spamizbad 5y ago

Tons of boosted goods land on Facebook Marketplace. It's also where shoplifting rings tend to dump their goods.

agumonkey 5y ago

Who here uses trackers ? apparently there are lorawan based modules with included data plan and a phone app for less than 100$

UncleEntity 5y ago
One of the apple iTags would probably work pretty well I would think. Attach with GorillaGlue++ so they have to seriously degrade the value of the bike for extra points.

71a54xd 5y ago

The amount of this behavior on eBay is also pretty stunning, however the rules that have been proposed to curve this basically stand to completely destroy secondary markets which is horrible for single use electronics consumption and the environment in general.

literallyaduck 5y ago

Facebook should be held to the same standards as pawnshops.

bhance 5y ago
also Offerup. Please, please please.
School-Cotton 5y ago
What standards are pawnshops held to?
- bhance 5y ago
  Here is just one example https://www.portland.gov/code/14/b90 https://www.portland.gov/code/14/b90 check out "14B.90.080 Reporting of Secondhand Dealer Transactions" details differ by state and city, but the gist is "electronic records of serials are transmitted to law enforcement" etc. Also items are held for a while, not sold immediately.

windows2020 5y ago

In early high school, we'd ride bikes to the local coffee shop, lean them against the big windows out front and hangout. Somehow, no one noticed when mine was snatched one evening. I was pretty devastated. My grandfather drove me around the town the next day to see if I could spot it. When we were about to give up, I noticed a bike leaning along side a house near the shop. I could see it from the street. It looked exactly like mine. It had the same replacement seat and even a curly bike lock coiled around the handlebars on the same side I left it. But it had been hastily spray pained. We called the police, they arrived and a kid inside noticed the commotion and came out. They had found the bike at the shop and took it. I went to inspect it. I was very surprised when I found the small yard behind the house was packed with around fifty bikes. To the cop, I said something like, "there's tons of bikes back here!" I then remembered another friend had theirs stolen as well. He didn't look for himself, and said I couldn't just take the bike. There was no proof it was mine. So, I said, "what if I can unlock the bike lock?" I could and was allowed to take it, but it had been ruined. My prized shiny bike had been banged up and spray painted. The following week my mother read me a letter that had arrived. The town would not be prosecuting the kid. I was confused. I did nothing wrong and stayed out of trouble myself. Did their actions not warrant any consequences? My mother ended up going to the police department and insisting the town prosecute, which they ended up doing. I'm not sure what happened. Did the consequences dissuade them from stealing a 51st bike? Their family had failed them, would their community? If not for religion, what hope did they have?

tomcam 5y ago
If your mom is still around, please thank her for me. Seriously, that was an amazing thing she did.
theturtletalks 5y ago
Had my bike stolen twice out of my garage and the first thing I did was file a police report with the color and brand. Write down your serial number if you have a bike and so you can provide that as well. I knew the police would not really look for a bike so I scoured Craigslist, OfferUp, and Facebook Marketplace. Eventually I found the bike both times. I messaged the person to meet up, called the police, and provided my report number and the listing. The police met up the people and got my bike back twice. What happened to the thieves that stole my bike twice and broke my expensive locks? Absolutely nothing. When I asked the cop why they weren't cited or charged, he said they were fences. Guess if you're a fence, you can get away with selling stolen goods because you can claim you thought you bought the item legitimately. I'm sure those fences were selling other people's bikes as well, but cops didn't do anything. The deterrence for small crimes is slowly falling as thieves are realizing that the cops are not punishing thieves even after catching them red-handed.

mfashby 5y ago

TFA reminded me to go register my own bike, which I had forgotten to do. I also registered at bikeregister.com which is linked from the UK police.

slim 5y ago

Off topic, but classic film to watch : Ladri di bicyclette, by Vittorio de Sica https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040522/ https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0040522/

0cVlTeIATBs 5y ago

I looked to see if they have been sentenced, but instead found this about the fence of the group: "Adrian Rocha Chairez is charged with 31 felony counts including racketeering. Police say he headed up an organized crime ring responsible for more than a million dollars in damaged property and stolen cars and bikes. He was indicted in Denver, where a judge set bond at $500,000. A Boulder judge knocked it down to $10,000. He walked out even after prosecutors noted he had weapons and ties to Mexico." [0] https://denver.cbslocal.com/2021/12/08/boulder-pr-bonds-murray-district-attorney/ https://denver.cbslocal.com/2021/12/08/boulder-pr-bonds-murr...

denton-scratch 5y ago
> and ties to Mexico That sounds like enough reason on its own to lock the dude up, right? Would the bond reduction be OK if the guy had ties to (say) Scotland?
- eloff 5y ago
  The difference is it's easy to skip bond and run off to Mexico, and hard to get them back from there afterwards. Not the same at all with Scotland.
  - denton-scratch 5y ago
    OIC. I thought someone on bail couldn't cross the border.
    - eloff 5y ago
      Unfortunately the Mexican border is somewhat porous.
starwind 5y ago
Hoo boy, this one's good (from the same article): "Police suspect Savuth and Yulisa Yin in the death and cover-up of a Longmont real estate broker. They’re charged with stealing $3 million in property from him. They were let out on $500 cash bonds each, even after prosecutors presented evidence that they planned to leave the country." That's Boulder for you

mikotodomo 5y ago

Wow, I didn't know it's possible to nerd out so hard on bike theft.

GaylordTuring 5y ago
Nerds find a way. Which is a good thing, by the way!
- mikotodomo 5y ago
  :)

xyst 5y ago

off topic: some of these bike brands I have never heard of but they look impressive. The zerode brand has particularly caught my eye. Would it be a waste of money to use these strictly on roads?

citizenpaul 5y ago

Who is buying a $5000 bike from Mexico for a 10% discount. Seems like a lot of risk for a very minor discount on an very expensive item with no warranty. It makes me suspicious there is even more to the story than the author was able to dig into.