Photo shopped – background of Gumtree pic helps police collar bike thief

A bike thief from Middlesbrough was collared by police after officers recognised the interior of his home from the background of photographs posted on the website Gumtree.

Craig Evans, aged 31, stole bikes worth thousands of pounds from towns in North Yorkshire during a three-week spree last summer, choosing the location due to its popularity with cyclists.

He targeted bicycles left unlocked outside cafes in Stokesley and Great Ayton and, in one instance, one propped up on a park bench that its owner was sitting on at the time.

According to the Darlington & Stockton Times, Evans, a carpet fitter, admitted handling one stolen bike and stealing three others after police discovered his DNA on a water bottle that was with one of the bikes.

On Tuesday, he was jailed for 18 weeks at Northallerton Magistrates’ Court.

PC Alastair Gill, of Stokesley Police, said: "This case shows that we will not tolerate travelling criminals coming into North Yorkshire intent on committing crime, and ruining local residents' quality of life.

“If they do, be in no doubt, they will be pursued, identified and arrested."