Brutal, scary and just a bit nuts. Bike theft is definitely a thing all over the place, but this one is terrifying and bonkers all at the same time.
On Saturday, there was a shocking daylight robbery in place in Putney, a residential neighbourhood in southwest London, UK. The sketchy incident took place when two masked thieves on a scooter stole bikes from a locked roof rack, according to the team’s Instagram account.
“Today at 2:55 pm, two thieves in balaclavas on a moped stole our team bikes directly off a locked roof rack in a residential street in Putney,” the caption read. One thief reportedly jumped onto the manager’s car to physically rip the bikes off the rack while the other waited on a moped with the license plate PK24 EXD.
Knife and a moped
“When confronted by one of the team managers, one of the thieves brandished a large knife and threatened them,” the post continued. The thieves sped away with a red team bike, leaving the other “completely destroyed, hanging mangled off the roof rack.”
Police have been notified, according to the British outfit. The team is urging anyone with information to contact them or the Metropolitan Police.
The Instagram post concludes: “Bike theft in London has become organized and brazen… Please share this post so we can increase awareness and get some justice. We won’t let this stop us.”
The British team is a top amateur squad–but all kinds of squads have also been victim to thieves over the years. Whether it’s Visma-Lease a Bike, TotalEnergies, a trailer full of Marin Bikes or the Manitoba Cycling Association, stuff has been nicked.
Heck, some people even steal the damn cobbles from Paris-Roubaix!
Here’s the footage of the daytime robbery below. Hopefully the criminals behind it are caught and prevented from doing this again.