A cyclist attacked by a gang of axe-wielding motorbike riders, who hit him repeatedly and stole his bike, says he doesn’t feel comfortable cycling on his own anymore, as police appeal for witnesses amid a renewed spate of violent bikejackings.

A number of targeted attacks on cyclists have taken place in north London and Hertfordshire in recent weeks, including one incident from 12 October which saw a motorcyclist deliberately crash into a cyclist, while another thief, riding on the back of the motorbike, appeared to be holding an axe.

During the incident, captured by an oncoming motorist’s dashcam and published by the BBC, the cyclist manages to grab his bike and escape, before the two attackers appear to take off after him.

Moped riders attack cyclist in Hertfordshire
Moped riders attack cyclist in Hertfordshire (Image Credit: Tom Edwards)

Detectives in Hertsmere are also currently appealing for witnesses following a separate, this time successful, bikejacking attempt which took place the previous week.

At around 8.20am on Sunday 5 October, a cyclist was riding on Rowley Lane, Borehamwood, when two men on mopeds, wearing dark motorbike helmets, approached and threatened him before stealing his bike, a Canyon Endurance road bike.

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Another cyclist, Shaiba Ilyas, told BBC London that he was also recently attacked while riding his bike near Borehamwood by axe-wielding moped riders.

Ilyas says he was repeatedly hit on the shoulder with a hard object during the attack, which took place on a recent Thursday afternoon, and which led to his bike being stolen by the attackers.

“I didn’t know what it was. And they were shouting, ‘stop, stop’, swearing, saying stop,” he told the BBC. “I sort of jammed on the brakes, almost fell into the ditch. I just managed to stay upright. They continued hitting me on my shoulder.

“I saw he was hitting me with the reverse of a sort of hand axe. He then turned the axe round and was waving it at my face, sort of waving it across in front of me saying, ‘give me the bike, give me the bike, get off your bike, give me the bike’.”

Describing his attackers as “young kids”, around 16 to 18-years-old, Ilyas said he was “upset” about the loss of his bike. However, he noted that the “the biggest thing was the threats of violence and the way they behaved towards me, and if I had tried to put up a fight what they might have done”.

“I don’t feel comfortable going out on my own at the moment,” he said. “I just don’t. I’m just too nervous to do so.”

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Responding to the recent spate of attacks, Hertfordshire Constabulary have advised cyclists who believe they are being followed, particularly in a remote area, to immediately call 999.

“We’d rather attend to find that everything is in order, than miss an opportunity to catch a potential criminal,” the force said.

“Many riders use helmet cameras and GPS trackers as an extra security measure. You can also security mark your bike and register it on the National Cycle Database.”

The high-value nature of bikes has made them a concerningly common target for criminals in recent years. We’ve reported on numerous incidents involving professional riders, club riders and businesses being targeted in increasingly organised break-ins, as well as these frightening bikejacking incidents where riders have been robbed of their bikes during training rides.

Earlier this year, horrifying footage emerged of the moment a cyclist was attacked and robbed of his bike by hammer-wielding moped-riding thieves, as part of a string of violent bikejackings to hit Regent’s Park at the start of this year.

Cyclist attacked by hammer-wielding bikejackers in Regent's Park, London
Cyclist attacked by hammer-wielding bikejackers in Regent's Park, London (Image Credit: Metropolitan Police)

This renewed wave of criminality prompted the Met Police to assure cyclists who use the park that it will “direct uniform and plain clothes patrols to target criminals at peak offending times”.

We also reported that London cyclists who use Regent Park’s quiet roads for early morning training, in a similar manner to Borehamwood’s cyclists at the moment, admitted that they feel like “sitting ducks” after a spate of terrifying targeted attacks on people on bikes in January, which saw robbers using sharp objects to puncture tyres, threatening victims with hammers, and forcing riders off their bikes.

Speaking this week, Sean Epstein, the chair of the Regent’s Park Cyclists group, said the types of attacks taking place at the moment “are not about ‘theft’ or ‘expensive bikes’ – they are violent attacks with massive victim and community impact”.

“The most recent incidents are on the main cycling thoroughfares out of north London,” he said. “People should feel safe leaving their house for exercise, not terrified to be picked off like sitting ducks.”

This feeling of being a sitting duck is what prompted pro cyclist Jennifer George to admit in 2022 that she no longer rides alone after two bikejacking attempts as she rode out to Surrey from her home in south-east London.

In 2021, former Alpecin-Fenix pro Alexandar Richardson was threatened with a machete and dragged for 100 metres by moped-riding muggers in London’s Richmond Park, a teenager later sentenced to 12 months for the attack.