3 ms·

I spent a summer 'rescuing' stolen bikes from (mostly homeless) chopshops and under-bridge/in desert settlements, and only found one or two of more than 50 form

by smm11 3y ago

I spent a summer 'rescuing' stolen bikes from (mostly homeless) chopshops and under-bridge/in desert settlements, and only found one or two of more than 50 former bike owners who wanted their property back. The risk to me was too great, and I had dozens of high-dollar, spraypainted, butchered former nice bikes stuffed into my garage. Never again.

duxup 3y ago
The more vigilante side of things, gotta be careful too. I have no problem telling / hoping someone would pickup the trash they saw and helped out even if a little. But not so much retrieving stolen bikes, those folks, their call.
sandworm101 3y ago
>> The risk to me was too great, and I had dozens of high-dollar, spraypainted, butchered former nice bikes stuffed into my garage. Possession of stolen property is still a serious crime. There is generally no exemption for vigilante people returning stolen goods. I honestly would not advise amassing stolen property in your garage no matter your good intentions. Batman wears a mask for a reason.
- crooked-v 3y ago
  I feel like that giant penny has to be over the line of felony possession of stolen goods just by itself, right?
wolverine876 3y ago
> only found one or two of more than 50 former bike owners who wanted their property back Why didn't they want their bicycles?
- smm11 3y ago
  Insurance settlements and the hassle of fixing what were basically trashed bikes. Yes, I realized I was in possession of stolen property after a time. I also went through a few baseball bats.
- saagarjha 3y ago
  I assume if you’ve already bought a new bike getting your old one back is somewhat of a hassle.
RecycledEle 3y ago
Did you ever "rescue" a bike only to learn that you had taken it from someone who legally owned it (or thought they legally owned it) and really needed it?

3 ms·

I spent a summer 'rescuing' stolen bikes from (mostly homeless) chopshops and under-bridge/in desert settlements, and only found one or two of more than 50 form

by smm11 3y ago

duxup 3y ago
The more vigilante side of things, gotta be careful too. I have no problem telling / hoping someone would pickup the trash they saw and helped out even if a little. But not so much retrieving stolen bikes, those folks, their call.
sandworm101 3y ago
>> The risk to me was too great, and I had dozens of high-dollar, spraypainted, butchered former nice bikes stuffed into my garage. Possession of stolen property is still a serious crime. There is generally no exemption for vigilante people returning stolen goods. I honestly would not advise amassing stolen property in your garage no matter your good intentions. Batman wears a mask for a reason.
- crooked-v 3y ago
  I feel like that giant penny has to be over the line of felony possession of stolen goods just by itself, right?
wolverine876 3y ago
> only found one or two of more than 50 former bike owners who wanted their property back Why didn't they want their bicycles?
- smm11 3y ago
  Insurance settlements and the hassle of fixing what were basically trashed bikes. Yes, I realized I was in possession of stolen property after a time. I also went through a few baseball bats.
- saagarjha 3y ago
  I assume if you’ve already bought a new bike getting your old one back is somewhat of a hassle.
RecycledEle 3y ago
Did you ever "rescue" a bike only to learn that you had taken it from someone who legally owned it (or thought they legally owned it) and really needed it?