Vancouver seeing spike in bike thefts: police
Last Updated: Monday, August 24, 2009 | 5:26 PM PT
CBC News
Vancouver is a city filled with bikes and thieves intent on stealing them have been getting bolder, police say. (CBC)Vancouver police say there's been a sharp increase in the number of bicycles stolen in the city this summer and thieves are sometimes going to dangerous extremes to get what they're after.
More than 250 bikes went missing during the first three weeks of August and in some cases, thieves have even climbed up apartment building exteriors, according to Vancouver police.
Thieves scale the balconies, throw the bike over, hop on, and ride away, spokesperson Const. Jana McGuinness said in a release.
Police figures showed the number of thefts in those first weeks of August increased by 53 per cent over the same period in 2008.
The figures also indicated that if the trends continue, more bikes will be stolen this year than in 2008. Police said 1,417 bicycle thefts have been reported so far in 2009 compared to 1,596 reported for all of 2008.
Cyclists need a sturdy lock but should also record serial numbers, make and model information, and any modifications they made to a bike so it can be readily identified if it is recovered, McGuinness said.
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