­If you ask New Yorkers if their bike was ever stolen and recovered, you will get a much smaller number of responses. The following is the story of my bike being stolen and recovered by myself all in the course of one week. In it I discuss the details of the story as well as lessons learned and tips for anyone who uses a bike in NYC.

It all began on Thursday, September 10, 2009 when I rode my bike from my home to the Kings Highway Subway station. The two minute bike ride from my home is a nice refreshing ride that reduces 20 minutes from my daily commute as well as wakes me up on cold days. Recently, the city installed sheltered bike parking on Kings Highway and E 15 St. It is usually full by the time I get there, so I opted to lock it with my U-Lock to a meter at the entrance on Quentin Rd and E 16 St (1st image on right) on my way to Manhattan. I figured that with all the people coming to and from the train along with the frequent NYPD officers at the station, my bike would be safe there. When I returned from the city later that afternoon, and approached the meter where I had left it, I noticed that it was not where I had left it. Confused, I looked around at the other meters on the block thinking this was not the meter I had left my bike at. As I approached the meter, I saw a small metal bar on the floor. As I got closer to inspect it, I saw the unmistakable bottom bar of my Kryptonite U-Lock. “But it’s a U-Lock, you can’t break a U-Lock!” My lock had been cut and the bike was gone. I stood there for two minutes in shock at what had obviously happened here. I walked home coming to grips with the loss of my bike that had served me so well for five years. Knowing that only 2% of all stolen bike are ever recovered in NYC (http://bit.ly/frRd9), I accepted the fact that I would likely never see my bike again. However, I would do what I could to get it back.

The next day (Friday), I went to my local police precinct (61) to report the crime. I filled out some paperwork describing my bike and its value. As the officer was finishing his paperwork, I asked when I could call to check on the progress of my case. He told me not to call and if the Detectives had any questions, they would call me. “Don’t call us, we’ll call you!” In addition to reporting the crime, I began checking craigslist for the bike. I figured that the thief may try to sell it off quickly. It was an arduous task since there are so many listings a day. I did it throughout the week with no success. I began thinking about where I would purchase my next bike.

Then on Wednesday (September 16, 2009) I was walking home from the train at 8:45 PM when out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a bike locked to a meter that looked a lot like mine (image on left). As I turned to look at it, I noticed that indeed it was my bike. The way I know is that I have replaced the standard knobby tires that come standard with Continental Town & Country. I have never seen another bike with them, let alone a Grey 2004 Specialized HardRock Sport. With plenty of meters on this street, the bike was locked up in front of a local restaurant (Adelmans). I figured that it was locked up by one of the employees. I recognized this as probably the only opportunity I would have to recover my bike and wanted to ensure that I did indeed recover it. I didn’t want to startle the person that had locked it up since if he/she would try to move it, I would have to confront him/her and was unsure of how that would go down. Hiding by the bank at the corner, I dialed 9-1-1. I told the operator that I see the bike I reported stolen last week. She took down my location and informed me that they would send someone as soon as possible. I have grown up in NYC and know that the police have a tendency to take a while to come. I was sure that if the rider of the bike came to it, I WOULD NOT let him/her leave. I had my camera in my hand hoping to use it as a scare tactic. I figured that if I had some people with me, it would be easier to hold the bike at its current location. In my area there is a volunteer community safety patrol called Shomrim. It’s made up of many local volunteers that are available to help with issues in Midwood and surrounding areas. I figured that having them there would be helpful in keeping the bike locked to the meter until the Police arrived. I called them and within 2 minutes, two people arrived to assist me. Within the next ten minutes, another two volunteers arrived to stand together with me. My brothers also came to the site to help. At this point, the volunteers asked me how I would prove to the Police that this was indeed my bike. I had not thought about that since I was caught up in all the excitement. I had never had this bike serialized and would need proof if the Police would cut the lock for me. Since I was on my way home from work, I had my laptop on me. I pulled it out and started going through the pictured I had from out monthly rides. I figured that if I could find a picture of that bike and its unique tires, which would prove sufficient.

While we are all standing around the bike, a car pulls up and parks in the spot in front of it. The driver walks up to us and asks if we are doing something with the bike. We tell him that this is my bike that was stolen last week and ask him why he is asking. He says that he works in a local restaurant across the street. He says that every week a young Russian fellow walks in selling bikes for about $20. He told us that the thief steals them from around the train station, cleans them up, and sells them to people in the local stores. He says that he wants to assist the Police in catching the thief since the thief sold him two bikes only to steal them back a week later. As I inspected my bike, I noticed that it was cleaned. The bike was dirty form use when it was stolen, but now it was shiny and clean. The speedometer sensor, kickstand, light, lock, water bottle mounting pieces were all removed. At one point, one of the employees of the restaurant this was locked up in front of came out of the store and was looking at the bike and us with a nervous look on his face. He stood around for about one minute and eventually went back inside. I think it was his but never got a chance to ask him.

It was now an hour after I had originally called the Police. I found a picture on my laptop from our Riis Park ride almost one year ago. In one of the pictures we took in front of a deserted hanger in Floyd Benet Field, was a picture of my bike. In it you could see the tires, but more importantly, I noticed that the frame had a very unique scratch on the frame. Looking at me bike now I saw that scratch popping out at me on this very clean bike. The volunteers agreed that this would be the proof that the Police could use to cut the lock and return my bike to me. About fifteen minutes later, the Police arrived. I showed them the picture confirmed that this was indeed the bike in my picture and authorized the Shomrim (who had a very large lock cutter in their trunk. They cut the small Master lock right off and returned my bike to me. I was elated to have my bike back. Thus in under one week, my bike was stolen and returned to me.

This story brings up some questions and discussions about bike theft in NYC:

1. NYPD is weak on bike theft: Approximately 60,000 bikes are stolen in NYC each year. Of those only 2% are recovered. What is the NYPD doing about it? There seems to be a strong effort put forth in catching pickpockets. There was a point that the NYPD was placing wallets in the Subway and watch for someone to pick it up. They would then arrest that person. If they have the resources for that, why is so little done to bring down the number of bike thefts or up the number recovered. If an area has a large number of stolen bikes, the local precinct should lock up a bike in that area and watch it. When it’s stolen, the thief should be arrested and prosecuted. Someone who is stealing bikes usually does not just steal one. If the city wants cycling to become the norm, it needs to get serious about bike theft.
2. Bike owners should register their bike: I was fortunate to have a picture that proved that this was my bike. Without it, I would have no way of recovering it even if the Police had recovered it for me. If you own a bike, call your local precinct and arrange for a meeting with the crime prevention officer so that you can get you bike registered. In that case, if it is recovered, you have proof that it is yours.
3. Don’t just give up: So many bike thefts go unreported. People feel that they will never get it back and just give up immediately. Instead of giving up, you should report it to the Police and check your local craigslist. Many precincts have many bikes that are recovered, but have no owner. If your bike is recovered, you should have a chance of getting it back. Even if it’s not recovered, at least it will be recorded in the stats. The higher the number of thefts reported, the more attention it will get from the NYPD
4. Lock your bike in public places: Locking it in a public place with many people can help ensure it’s there when you get back: A thief may be wearier to steal a bike that is locked up in Times Square (where he/she has the chance of being noticed) than on a private quieter street. When I travel anywhere by bike, I am sure to find the busiest street in the area to lock up my bike.