How to stop bicycle thieves in Toronto?

[Hipster Duck]

Partner? You're a cop?

Geez, ghost of Jeff Buckley, you've really fallen from Grace.

How did you go from "Love, let me sleep tonight on your couch...And remember the smell of the fabric of your simple city dress" to writing one line slurs on an urban discussion forum?

 

[Mystery White Boy]

Geez, ghost of Jeff Buckley, you've really fallen from Grace.

How did you go from "Love, let me sleep tonight on your couch...And remember the smell of the fabric of your simple city dress" to writing one line slurs on an urban discussion forum?

lol oh that was so real.

 

[Admiral Beez]

The only solution for daily cycle commuters would be to have lockers for bikes at their office buildings. In high school I used to work at a Shoppers Drug Mart downtown and put my bike in the basement when I was working.

There's always bikes that you take with you up to your office, such as...

The Backpack bike http://www.hammacher.com/publish/74217.asp?promo=sp_travel

Folding Bikes http://www.dahon.com/us/folding-bicycles-us-models.htm
(check out the rack on the girl, Asian girls with shape are fantastic!)

You can also skip the bike and instead get yourself a scooter or motorcycle, as on-street parking is free, and auto theft is about to become a serious criminal offence, as opposed to being considered a light property offence, such as with bicycle theft. Plus, it's pretty difficult to steal a 400+ lb. motorcycle with a disk-brake lock, steering lock and without the ignition key.

 

[theowne]

People don't seem to get how easy it is for a bike to be stolen. I had a friend who put his bike up against the Shopper's Drug Mart window/wall, thinking, "hey, I can see it from in there, no one will dare steal it". And then - someone rode of on it. And what was he going to do. Run to the exit and try to chase after him?

I never leave my bike alone for than 5 minutes. I even lock it when it's behind my house, because my cousin used to roll his bike behind his house (out of sight from the main road) and leave it there...well, it still got stolen.

 

[junctionist]

People don't seem to get how easy it is for a bike to be stolen. I had a friend who put his bike up against the Shopper's Drug Mart window/wall, thinking, "hey, I can see it from in there, no one will dare steal it". And then - someone rode of on it. And what was he going to do. Run to the exit and try to chase after him?

I never leave my bike alone for than 5 minutes. I even lock it when it's behind my house, because my cousin used to roll his bike behind his house (out of sight from the main road) and leave it there...well, it still got stolen.

They only realize how common bike theft is after their bike is stolen. You definitely have to lock your bike up when it's behind your house. Some thieves walk around at night, checking garages. It must be common that one person will forget to lock their garage on any given night. The bike will be gone. The best thing to do is to lock it in the garage and double check the garage lock.

I like this jab at bike thieves:



I think those are high end locks on that bicycle!

 

[Lilibet]

Too funny!
Mind you, when my son was small, he had a bike just like that.
We'd ride pretty much everywhere on our bikes and I used a Kryptonite lock on his bike. I think the lock weighed more than the bike.

 

[confusion]

The best advice I would give anyone locking up a bike in Toronto is:

1. Multiple Locks (Two U-Locks, or one U-Lock and an O-Lock for the rear wheel)
2. Run a cable between your tires and wire it into the U-Lock.
3. Do not buy cheap locks, but the most expensive one you can. I bought a $60 Bulldog U-Lock that has be tampered with on many occassions and is still holding strong.
4. Make your bike look unappealing for resale. Spray paint, tacky colours.

Sometimes it feels like a lot initially to spend on security for a bike, but it's that or loosing your bike to some low-life theif. And don't assume the police will care, because they don't.

 

[Hydrogen]

You can avoid bicycle theft by driving a car.

One reason I got rid of my car was because of break-ins. Smashed windows fell below the deductible.

 

[architext]

My bike was stolen a week ago.... I decided to use my car instead, and not bother with another bike that will get stolen again.

 

[Jarrek]

Sorry for your loss.
Igor's on Queen West was always a hotspot for stolen bikes.
He'd vehemently deny it of course.
As for bikes being stolen on a busy sidewalk in the middle of the day, my partner and I were walking on Bloor West near the ROM one lovely early summer evening when a bike heist was in progress. We confronted the bloke which resulted in him swinging his crowbar at us. We could see by his glassy eyes he was cracked up on something, so we backed off. Neither of us carries a mobile phone but we managed to get another pedestrian to call the cops from their phone, for what that was worth because in the time it took the thief was long gone.
I'd like to add that I've seen this dude hanging out around Igor's.
I myself ride a clunker around town, and even then use two locks, and no quick release stuff on the wheels or seat.
My partner rides a clunker as well but his was stolen, then again he left it propped outside a convenience store while he went in to get something.
Moral of that tale...if it ain't nailed down it can and most likely will be nicked.

Well, seems like Igor was caught red handed ...

Bike-shop owner charged with theft

http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/462615

 

[Arob]

Lilibet nailed it

I was shocked when I saw that Igor has been arrested.

Lilibet pegged it perfectly - I wonder if the police followed the tip that was posted right here? I guess we'll never know...

 

[spasongs]

When some scumbag stole my $800 mountainbike that I saved for ages for,I was laughed at by the cop who said " OUch, thats gotta hurt eh!?" . He then tells me to go down to igors to have a look.

That is pathetic.This happened in the winter, and they knew all too well what was going on.

Someone high up got spooked by a news report on bike theft and finally did something.

They used to hang horse thieves right ?? Well.......

 

[yin_yang]

Maybe he's a lawyer

 

[MetroMan]

I wonder if we'll see a decline in thefts. From what I understand – I live down the street from his shop and several of my friends are cops @ 14 Division – he's a pretty big fish, if not THE BIG FISH in bike theft in Toronto.

The cops couldn't move in without solid evidence. He never gets his own hands dirty... well, he does, but in bike oil... He never steals the bikes himself.

All they needed was a solid eye witness, in this case the police officers investigating bike theft, to move in. They have so much shit on this guy, and the pile of shit only gets bigger by the day, that there's no way he's coming back. Today I heard from a neighbor that they arrested his wife too for possession of drugs.

Can I finally buy a bike now? I've held off since many of my friends got theirs stolen regardless of the size of the lock they used.

Ironically, his arrest is going to hurt the bike market in Toronto. People will have their bikes for longer so they won't need to purchase new ones.

Now, I don't want to get in trouble for inciting hate and violence, but I'm pretty surprised at how this guy is still alive. He's so well known as the head honcho and the probable destination of your stolen bike that I'm curious why he wasn't made the victim of bike groups vigilante justice.

Regardless of the crimes he's going to be charged with, this is Canada after all so he'll be out in a handful of years. With all these people finding out who stole their bikes, I hope he knows that he won't be safe in this city... You'll know where to find him when 5 years from now, some small Ontario town sees a 500% upshoot in bike theft.

 

[TKTKTK]

Now, I don't want to get in trouble for inciting hate and violence, but I'm pretty surprised at how this guy is still alive. He's so well known as the head honcho and the probable destination of your stolen bike that I'm curious why he wasn't made the victim of bike groups vigilante justice.

He mustn't have a car.