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Cardiff man spots his stolen bike – and locks it up so he can get it backLocked bicycle (copyright Simon MacMichael)

Cardiff man spots his stolen bike – and locks it up so he can get it back

Ian Fernando reunited with bike seven months after it was stolen
by Simon_MacMichael
Thu, Mar 05, 2015 16:32
8

A Cardiff man spotted his bike, stolen seven months ago, chained to a lamp post – and used a lock so it couldn’t be moved in a successful bid to get it back.

Ian Fernando, aged 34, saw the Bondi Beach Cruisers bike on City Road and as well as locking it up, left a note to explain it was his bike.

The rooftop and pop-up cinema operator told Wales Online: “I was gutted when my bike was stolen seven months ago. It was chained to a bus stop outside where I worked in Bute Street.

“It wasn’t an expensive bike but it was unique and I loved riding it. I informed the police but I was told the CCTV camera wasn’t facing where the bike was locked and there was probably not much chance of me getting it back.

“Wherever I am I always look for my bike and I couldn’t believe it when I was driving down City Road on Tuesday and saw it chained up. I parked my car and went to have a look.

“I knew straight away it was mine as I had changed the back wheel with a road tyre and I also changed the grips on the handle bars.

“A police car drove past so I flagged them down and explained the situation.

“They were going to seize the bike but couldn’t get the chain off so I had the idea of buying a lock, putting that on the bike and leaving a note with my telephone number.”

The website says that within an hour, a man called to say he had removed his own lock, and Ian could pick up the bike.

“I did ask them where they had got the bike and they said they had bought it on Sunday at a market,” he added.

“I went to get the bike and felt great to have it back. What were the chances of that happening? I couldn’t believe it.”

Cardiff
Cycle theft
Simon MacMichael

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

Avatar
purplemadwoman | 9 years ago
0 likes

Not the first time I've heard of this happening - certainly something I'd do if I ever saw my stolen bikes!

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Municipal Waste | 9 years ago
0 likes

Public execution for all convicted criminals = no more repeat offenders. 26

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horizontal dropout | 9 years ago
0 likes

Sign this petition to get the police to release frame numbers so that second hand buyers can check up on their potential new steed.

https://www.change.org/p/make-frame-numbers-of-stolen-bikes-searchable

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mike the bike | 9 years ago
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If you were a penniless young lad why would you NOT steal things? Of course they know it's wrong, but they also know the penalty is likely to be a stern letting off or a fine they needn't pay.
All of which proves I recognise the problem but unfortunately have no idea of a solution.

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smileyT | 9 years ago
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http://road.cc/content/review/124569-datatag-uv-stealth-pro

no brainer really - that is if you love your bike and want to keep it.

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fenix replied to smileyT | 9 years ago
0 likes

Except it won't help you keep it - it might just let you get it back if it does get stolen.

I'd prefer not to have the bike nicked in the first place.

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cyclotripper | 9 years ago
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I really don't understand why bicycle theft is so prevalent... there is a real problem with society when such theft is so common. Maybe bikes should be registered in some manner, so its harder to sell them second hand...

glad he got his bike back..

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maldin replied to cyclotripper | 9 years ago
0 likes
cyclotripper wrote:

I really don't understand why bicycle theft is so prevalent... there is a real problem with society when such theft is so common. Maybe bikes should be registered in some manner, so its harder to sell them second hand...

glad he got his bike back..

There isn't a single central national register (administered by the government) but there is more than one company that will register your bike for you. I have a few bikes and each one and its wheels has a registered marking on them (hard to remove and even once the stickers are removed, the UV marking remains). There is a visual warning on the bike (which may or may not discourage thieves depending on their IQ) but it does increase the chance of being reunited with the bike, proving it was stolen if there is ever a prosecution, and hopefully people who but second hand would check the paperwork before handing over money. The ownership can be transferred as well for a small registrstion fee (once off £5 last time I checked).

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