Photo by Quan Ha, under Creative Commons licence

Northumbria Police are appealing for witnesses and providing households in the Jesmond area with advice letters regarding pedal cycle theft, following a fourfold increase in of stolen cycles in a month.

Over the past few weeks Jesmond has seen an increase in the number of bicycles stolen. The first incident occurred between 1am on Wednesday October 22nd, and 5pm on Saturday October 25th, when a white Commencal Combi 200 bike with red writing on it was stolen from a rear yard at Bayswater Road in Jesmond. This was followed by a further theft between 6pm on Saturday October 25th, and 10am on Sunday October 26th, when a black and blue Boardman racing bike was stolen from the rear yard at a property nearby Hazelwood Avenue in Jesmond.

Police believe these two thefts to be linked and are appealing for any witnesses or anyone who may know the whereabouts of the bikes to get in touch. This can be done by calling police on 101 extension 69191, quoting references 1082 or 1038. Reporting information can also be done anonymously by contacting Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Northumbria Police are further urging people to secure their bikes as part of the forcewide Operation Soundwave campaign, aimed at tackling thieves and burglars and promoting crime prevention advice to residents.

Neighbourhood Police Inspector Neil Brotherton released a letter explaining that “offenders have been targeting pedal cycles in the rear yards of terraced houses in the area. It appears that on many occasions they are climbing on wheelie bins to climb over the back yard walls and cutting locks to steal the bikes.”

Due to this residents are being advised to store bicycles inside the property or in locked outbuildings such as sheds or garages. Police have further advised several options to reduce the chance of bikes being stolen: the removal of wheelie bins from rear lanes and into resident’s back yards; to secure bikes using a quality bike lock, preferably one which has the ‘Sold Secure’ security mark; and to register valuables, whether they be bikes or electronic devices on www.immobilise.com, the national property register. This is a free service which increases the chance of property recovered by Northumbria Police being returned to its owner.

Through consulting the UK crime statistics of the Jesmond and Heaton areas the number of bike thefts, among other crimes can be tracked and monitored. According to UK Crime Stats, there has been a dramatic increase of bike theft, from four reported cases in August 2014 to 16 in September 2014. However, by taking police advice to safely store bicycles and in working and communicating with police and the Neighbourhood watch team, Northumbria Police hopes to make the Jesmond area safer.

If residents have any worries, further queries, want additional crime prevention advice or simply want to contact their Neighbourhood Policing Team they are encouraged to get in touch by calling 101. There is also another Police Drop-in Session, encompassing all concerns residents may have, which will be held at Jesmond Library, St George’s Terrace on November 29th at 11am.