My stolen bike is on Gumtree for sale!

[ozboz]

My GF saw her bike on gumtree , gumtree we're not to helpful , and the police said there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute the person who placed it on
gumtree , many years ago a friend of mine had his DVD robbed , he found it being sold at a second hand stall on Oldham market , the police were involved and could not do anything ,
It's a legal flaw ,
in Australia , as I remember it , if you could prove the item was yours and been stolen , you got it back ,
which in itself was a deterrent to thieves and buyers of dodgy goods

 

[Grolsche11976]

did you get your bike back?

 

[ozboz]

did you get your bike back?

no , cops said not enough evidence, shame it was a nice Cube , was my GF 's
, incidentally , I had my Surly knocked off last year and a stroke of luck I got it back some months later , no cops involved ,

 

[chriscross1966]

But then you can be accused of stealing your own bike

I could live with that.

From memory, if you retrieve your stolen goods without violence then they're yours...

 

[steveindenmark]

You can be accused Chris but you are correct you can only steal "Property belonging to another".

 

[mickle]

The argument for recording your frame number, changing it enough to make it identifiably yours and taking photographs of it.

 

[robrinay]

I had a Dahon folder stolen in Nottingham a few years ago I immediately reported it to the Police and then drove around the Cities second hand shops. I saw the thief on the bike riding towards one of them, overtook him leapt out and grabbed the handlebars growling “My bike!” He nearly wet himself with fear , said he’d found it then legged it. I rang the Police with his description and the location as there were video cameras. With the exact science of hindsight I realised I might have been attacked or stabbed/slashed as he was obviously a fairly desperate druggie on his way to make enough cash for a ‘hit’ but at the time I didn’t think much beyond the adrenalin rush and consequent anger at seeing him on my bike.

 

[MahatmaAndhi]

About two weeks ago my mate had two bikes stolen from his garage (they were both locked up to a metal shelving unit which they sheared through). I saw one of them on Gumtree and Facebook, a bright orange Specialized hybrid with a few distinctive changes to the saddle and pedals and a very suspicious dent on the frame.
He called the police and they said that he would have to arrange to meet the guy and declare in person that the bike was his and stolen. Then "the guy will either run or wait for the police to protest his innocence."
My mate decided against the citizen's arrest as there was a hidden third option of potentially being stabbed.

It's shocking that the police would even suggest that he go and approach the thief/fence himself and put himself in such a volatile situation. I really dislike how the police are managed and funded. I have nothing against police officers generally, but Cambs Constabulary is stretched so thin that crime can only go one way because there appears to be no consequences.

 

[ozboz]

About two weeks ago my mate had two bikes stolen from his garage (they were both locked up to a metal shelving unit which they sheared through). I saw one of them on Gumtree and Facebook, a bright orange Specialized hybrid with a few distinctive changes to the saddle and pedals and a very suspicious dent on the frame.
He called the police and they said that he would have to arrange to meet the guy and declare in person that the bike was his and stolen. Then "the guy will either run or wait for the police to protest his innocence."
My mate decided against the citizen's arrest as there was a hidden third option of potentially being stabbed.

It's shocking that the police would even suggest that he go and approach the thief/fence himself and put himself in such a volatile situation. I really dislike how the police are managed and funded. I have nothing against police officers generally, but Cambs Constabulary is stretched so thin that crime can only go one way because there appears to be no consequences.

The police are not to interested in stolen bikes , but I am surprised they advocated putting him in harms way doing their job ,

 

[Adam4868]

Test ride ?

 

[Spoked Wheels]

The police are not to interested in stolen bikes , but I am surprised they advocated putting him in harms way doing their job ,

What are they interested in btw?

 

[ozboz]

What are they interested in btw?

Cups of tea and cake and chocky biccy’s and ..........

 

[alicat]

From memory, if you retrieve your stolen goods without violence then they're yours...

Yes, the bike is still yours so go view it and claim it back. That may involve being quite assertive so it could be good to take a friend. There was a thread on here a while ago where somebody successfully got their bike back.

 

[mjr]

What are they interested in btw?

They seem quite interested in getting dashcam footage around here. Easier than flooding the area with traffic cars, I guess.

 

[I like Skol]

Yes, the bike is still yours so go view it and claim it back. That may involve being quite assertive so it could be good to take a friend. There was a thread on here a while ago where somebody successfully got their bike back.

Me? https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/sons-school-run-hack-bike-stolen-recovered-mix-matched.190444/