Police in Canada collared a suspected bike thief – because he was riding without a helmet.
The bike was stolen last Wednesday from a school in Delta, British Columbia, where it had been locked to railings, reports vancouverisawesome.com.
Since 1996, all cyclists in British Columbia have been required by law to wear a cycle helmet.
So when police saw a man riding bare-headed near the school the following day, they stopped him.
The fact he was carrying another bicycle over his shoulder may also have aroused their suspicions, you’d have thought.
On questioning the man, police established he appeared to be in violation of conditions imposed by court orders.
They also discovered that the bike he was riding was the one that had been taken from the school the previous day, and it has been returned to its owner.
Officers are now trying to trace the owner of the second bike, also believed to have been stolen.
The man, 43-year-old Terry Lee Pipe, has been charged with possession of property obtained by crime, and three counts of failing to comply with court ordered conditions.
Simon has been news editor at road.cc since 2009, reporting on 10 editions and counting of pro cycling’s biggest races such as the Tour de France, stories on issues including infrastructure and campaigning, and interviewing some of the biggest names in cycling. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, his background has proved invaluable in reporting on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, and the bike industry. He splits his time between London and Cambridge, and loves taking his miniature schnauzer Elodie on adventures in the basket of her Elephant Bike.