2,436 recovered bicycles on display in Toronto
Last Updated: Friday, July 25, 2008 | 7:07 PM ET
CBC News
Toronto police officers are seen executing a search warrant on Wednesday morning at 54 Elm Grove Ave. (Jason Turnbull/CBC)Thousands of people in Toronto whose bicycles were stolen over the past few years have a chance to get them back.
On Friday, Toronto police began showing off the 2,439 bicycles they recovered from garages and lock-ups in connection with last week's sting operation that netted three arrests and so many bikes that one senior officer said earlier this week she was "astonished."
But there are so many bicycles police have had to find extra space to display them all.
At one location, 35 Strachan Ave., police will show off 1,100 bikes. Nearby, at 30 Ordnance St., a further 1,400 bicycles will be available for viewing at the following times:
- Friday, July 25: noon to 8 p.m.
- Saturday, July 26 and Sunday, July 27: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Monday, July 28 to Thursday, July 31: noon to 8 p.m.
Supt. Ruth White said anyone who wishes to claim a bike will need to bring something to identify the bicycle, or swear an oath stating that the bicycle belongs to them. Any bicycles not claimed by July 31 will be kept as evidence and the courts will decide what to do with them.
So far, only 55 bicycles have been returned to their owners. White said one of the problems has been the overwhelming number of bikes police have had to deal with and their inability, until now, to find a suitable location to display them.
White called it a "very trying time" and thanked those who have come forward with tips about where police might look for stolen bicycles. She also gave specific details of how many bikes police have recovered so far, and from where.
Police executed nine search warrants and found bicycles at eight locations: 136 bikes were found at 148 Pacific Ave., 614 at 927 Queen St. W., 79 at 14 Palmerston, 549 at 1080 College St., 246 at 30 High Park Ave., 202 on Dovercourt Rd., 184 at Berrymore St. and 429 at 54 Elm Grove Ave.
At one location police did not find any stolen bicycles.
White said that of the nearly 2,500 bicycles found, only 33 had been reported stolen based on their serial numbers. She said it is "imperative" that owners register their bikes on the Toronto Police Services website.
Igor Kenk, 49, the owner of The Bicycle Clinic at 927 Queen St. W., was arrested last week and is facing 60 charges in connection with the raids.
On Wednesday, Kenk's wife Jeanie Chung turned herself in to police and was charged along with her husband and 47-year-old Jean Laveau.
Police claim that by arresting Kenk last week, they busted one of the biggest bike theft rings in the city's history.
Kenk was taken into custody on July 16, after officers said they saw him directing a man with bolt-cutters to steal a bike.
Plainclothes officers made the arrest after Laveau allegedly cut the locks off two bicycles near Trinity-Bellwoods Park.
Toronto police figures show that more than 50,000 bikes have been reported stolen in the city since 1997. Last year alone, 4,585 bicycles were reported stolen.
"We had approximately 4,500 bicycles stolen last year. We have half of that here," said White.
