If your bike is stolen and then you see someone cycling it ?

barrymanilow

A few years back I had a beater mountain bike stolen from outside a place where I was taking a nightcourse . It was a cheap bike cost me about €80 . I was annoyed at the time but got over it and learned how to invest in a proper lock and lock the bike properly .

About 3 months after it being stolen I'm cycling in traffic on another cheap get around town bike and a guy is cycling up alongside me . I look down and he's on my stolen mountain bike , no mistaking it , I know that bike , exact same rust spots , same sticker etc . I catch his attention and motion for him to come over and talk with me on the foothpath .

I ask him where he got the bike and he tells me he got it in one of the bike shops in town (I won't name drop ) . He isn't a scumbag and I have a good read of people and have a naturally good internal bull**** detector so I believe him when he says that he got it from that shop which I know do second hand sales . I tell him it was stolen from me and he asks if I am sure and I say I am and just laugh it off and say goodbye as I'm in a rush and I had long got over it been stolen .It just wasn't worth the hassle at the time . So I just let it go .

I went in to that bike shop a few days later and asked if they ever got stolen bikes in . The guy in there shook his head saying "absolutely not , would never buy stolen bikes "That said it could have been sold first to someone of a non bike stealing appearance who then traded it in with that shop for a new bike etc .

So just wondering what would you do in a similar situation ? What could you legally do ?If you saw someone on your bike , they claimed they got it somewhere and they weren't willing to co-operate . Mine was a throw away banger but I'm sure my reaction would have been different if it was an expensive bike I had invested in .

smacl

AFAIK, bottom line is that if it was stolen, anyone who buys it is in receipt of stolen goods and has broken the law. As always, caveat emptor. When buying second hand goods, the buyer bears a responsibility for not buying stolen goods.

Beasty

You can't take the law into your own hands. All you can do is get it on your side. Ideally obtain the contact details of the person with your bike. Head off the your local Garda station and let them take it from there

aaakev

smacl wrote: »

AFAIK, bottom line is that if it was stolen, anyone who buys it is in receipt of stolen goods and has broken the law. As always, caveat emptor. When buying second hand goods, the buyer bears a responsibility for not buying stolen goods.

Except when buying from a shop.....

Tenzor07

For the sake of the 88cent a day you lost on this old bike after 3 months.. i'd say move on with your life! If you try and tackle the guy who allegedly has "your" bike then you may come out with a black eye, hardly worth it!?

loyatemu

Had you reported it to the guards? Could you even prove it was yours?

stefanovich

Happened to me once. My bike was stolen from outside the house and the next day we saw this young fella cycling it past my house. Myself and a friend gave chase and just before catching up with him a squad car drove past. We flagged the guards down and told them what was up. In the meantime the guy had entered a park and we continued to chase him. Poor fella was crying and said he had bought it just a few minutes earlier. Guards then arrived, took the bike until I could provide proof of ownership. 'Twas an exciting day

barrymanilow

loyatemu wrote: »

Had you reported it to the guards? Could you even prove it was yours?

I had but when I went back they had no record of my original report . The Garda I reported it to wrote down the details on a piece of paper which I suspect he just did in front of me to keep me happy/get rid of me , but besides I'm not really concerned with that particular bike , I'm just wondering what would happen if in the future one of my expensive bikes that I'd invested time and money into was nicked and I caught someone cycling it .Could I take it off them ? I now have all my bikes registered with the gardai , photographs and serial codes .

Beasty

I've deleted a couple of posts. Do not encourage anyone to take the law into their own hands

Any queries PM me - do not respond to this warning in-thread

barrymanilow

I would catch up with the guy riding my stolen bike , explain the situation politely telling him that he is in fact riding my bicycle and call out my telephone number slowly and loudly so that he might call me when he gets home so that we can work it all out .Nice and legal .

RainyDay

This happened me years ago, after my bike was stolen from the school shed. I spotted a guy pushing my bike outside Crumlin Shopping Centre weeks later, which is conveniently next door to Sundrive Garda Station. I dashed into the guards, who took me back up in a squad car and found yer man. I'm not sure what ever happened him, but I got my bike back a few weeks later.

Greentopia

Happened to my best friend a few years ago. She had an old Dutch upright granny bike she'd brought over from Amsterdam stolen. The type you see all the time over there where the lock is worth more than the bike itself.

Anyway she saw a young guy riding it past her a few days after-it was white and very distinctive, even in Dublin, so she knew it was hers.

Well she tore after him screaming to give it back (all 5'2" ~7 stone of her). He dropped it in fright, ran off and she got her bike back.

The bicycle was her means of transport and she loved it so she was damned if she was going to let some scobe get away with stealing it.

I'd do the same.

Qualitymark

barrymanilow wrote: »

I ask him where he got the bike and he tells me he got it in one of the bike shops in town (I won't name drop ) . He isn't a scumbag

stefanovich wrote: »

Happened to me once. My bike was stolen from outside the house and the next day we saw this young fella cycling it past my house. Myself and a friend gave chase and just before catching up with him a squad car drove past. …Guards then arrived, took the bike until I could provide proof of ownership. 'Twas an exciting day

Happened to me too - saw my lovely bike being ridden by an impoverished-looking woman. Asked where she'd got it and she first stuttered and then got aggressive. I shrugged and went away.

Until the Gardaí start prosecuting people for receiving stolen goods, bike theft will not end.

Fian

smacl wrote: »

AFAIK, bottom line is that if it was stolen, anyone who buys it is in receipt of stolen goods and has broken the law. As always, caveat emptor. When buying second hand goods, the buyer bears a responsibility for not buying stolen goods.

Only if the purchaser knows they have bought a stolen bike - if they don't realise the bike is stolen they have not committed the criminal offence.

However they don't own it, they have been ripped off by someone who "sold" them something they didn't own. The bike remains the property of the person from whom it was stolen. You are entitled to seize it, since it is your bike. (as long as you can prove it!)

Obviously common sense and reasonable force applies - you are not entitled to hit someone over the head or to do them physical injury to recover your bike. Force that might be reasonable in defense of your person may not be reasonable in defense of your property - especially when the person on the bike may not know or believe it is stolen. Better to let the bike go than face a prosecution for assault together with an action for damages against you by the person on the bike.