'Anonymous bike thief' note rallies Prince George Facebook group

A nine-year-old boy in Prince George, B.C., can pedal away happily again after his stolen bike was found with the help of the Hell Yeah Prince George! Facebook page.

The Haslett family returned home from Canada Day celebrations to find their son's bike had vanished from their carport.

'My son was pale, and he had this funny look on his face," Lisa Haslett told Daybreak North. "He was so upset."

After a day spent searching online for a replacement or someone selling the stolen bike Haslett received a text from a friend, wondering if a picture of a bike on her Facebook feed might be showing the one missing.

The image showed Haslett's son's bike leaning against a pole with a large, handwritten sign hanging from it.

"Dear little boy or girl," the sign read. "First and foremost, I am sorry for any grief I have caused in the last couple of days but I am now trying to return your bike."

The thief then went on to detail the cause of his illegal act as "selfish convenience and due to my state of inebriation".

He then cautioned the bike's owner against leaving their bike out "in plain view where drunken fools like myself can easily snatch it for a quick (and surprisingly fun) ride home".

The message was signed: "Anonymous bike thief."

Haslett posted the picture to the Hell Yeah Prince George! webpage asking if anyone knew where the bike was. Response was swift, and the bike was headed home within half an hour.

Haslett said she was "stunned" at the outcome, and appreciated the thief's humour in their apology enough to leave the original sign with a note of her own attached.

" Dear anonymous bike thief," it said. "Thank you for your attempt at making it right. My son has been miserable since he discovered his bike missing. Thanks! A soon to be happy boy's mama."