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British Transport Police issues 'Top Ten' pictures of bike thieves in Southampton area

Public called upon to help police snare the thieves who operate at railway stations

British Transport Police in Southampton have released a ‘Top Ten’ series of images of suspects that they would like to question in connection with bike thefts at railway stations in and around the Hampshire town and are appealing to the public to help track them down.

The images, which can be viewed here, together with details of the incidents to which they relate, show a dozen suspected bike thieves, all of them young males.

Anyone with information about any of the men pictured is asked to contact British Transport Police on 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference B9/LSA of 3/5/11 as well as the photograph number.

Inspector Mick Morriss of British Transport Police said “Officers investigating each of these ten cases have made enquiries, followed up numerous leads and circulated the images on police intelligence systems in a bid to identify these people, but to no avail so far.

“We are now asking for the public’s help to identify these twelve people. If you know them we want to hear from you.”

He continued: “Unfortunately cycles are a popular target for thieves but there are several steps people can take to ensure their bikes are adequately marked and secured to help reduce the risk of becoming a victim of bike theft.

“The best thing to remember is to register your bike and also to ensure a solid lock is used to secure it. If a bike is adequately marked, it makes it much easier to identify and therefore reduces its desirability to thieves.”

BTP officers hold cycle crime awareness surgeries at railway stations across Hampshire and elsewhere in the South of England to give advice on preventing bike crime.

Each fortnight, they also analyse the current bike theft hotspots and target them through covert and overt operations to try and catch the thieves.

Inspector Morriss added: “We will continue to work closely with South West Trains to proactively tackle cycle crime and passengers should report any suspicious behaviour to a member of staff or police.”
 

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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8 comments

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Bonita | 12 years ago
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Or maybe, the Southampton Police could try one of the new Spylamp GPS trackers, Sold by us here at MagicshineUK www.magicshineuk.co.uk, and tested by Road cc a couple of weeks ago. I'd be prepared to let them have one for a trial sting operation!  4

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rogie40 | 12 years ago
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Move to Exeter folks!
When one resident reported the theft of his bike, the Devon and Cornwall police helicopter was immediately scrambled to join in the search for it!Sadly though, no such luck when my mothers' house was burgled! Several hours later the local plod ambled over, had a look at the window and around the garden then quick as a flash was gone!
There was a follow up call the next day, but that was about it!
The million dollar question here is, can you spot which victim is the local MP?  39

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Tony Farrelly | 12 years ago
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isn't the one on the right Cristiano Ronaldo? You'd think he could afford his own bike

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marcswales | 12 years ago
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"British Transport Police (BTP) officers are calling on members of the public to help them "

Dog help us they haven't a clue have they?

"Photograph 1

...stealing a silver mountain bike"

It's not a mountain bike...

I wonder how accurate the rest of the statement is?

"Photograph 2

This man, wearing a high-visibility orange suit,"

Commmonly known as "Track Orange" mandatory for all trackside workers on the railways. The same people who have photo IDs , issued and administered Network Rail. They have the info to hand and yet they want the public to help?

Avatar
downfader replied to marcswales | 12 years ago
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marcswales wrote:

"British Transport Police (BTP) officers are calling on members of the public to help them "

Dog help us they haven't a clue have they?

"Photograph 1

...stealing a silver mountain bike"

It's not a mountain bike...

I wonder how accurate the rest of the statement is?

"Photograph 2

This man, wearing a high-visibility orange suit,"

Commmonly known as "Track Orange" mandatory for all trackside workers on the railways. The same people who have photo IDs , issued and administered Network Rail. They have the info to hand and yet they want the public to help?

Add to that little set of facts that the Rail industry charges commuters a fortune to play sardines, maybe they should invest in a decent CCTV system that produces something a little less blurry than a Britpop album.

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CLIVE ALDOUS | 12 years ago
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i blame matt le tiss

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downfader | 12 years ago
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Its a bit of a problem in Southampton. We're just starting to get out cyclist numbers back to where they were in the early 90s and this sort of thing puts off a lot of people.

The sad thing is the Police down here didnt really take it much more seriously than issuing a crime number for insurance purposes. Heres hoping things have changed, I know a few people who have lost a bike, most don't report it.

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pzycoman | 12 years ago
0 likes

Is it me, or do they all seem like chav scroates?

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