Police and online registry team up to recover stolen bikes - Action News
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Edmonton

Police and online registry team up to recover stolen bikes

City police hope to reunite more cyclists with their stolen bikes through a new partnership with an online bike registry.

Registered cyclists can be reunited with lost or stolen bikes if found

two police offices smiling in front of a bike
Const. Dana Gehring and Const. Kenny McKinnon announce a new partnership between Edmonton police and Bike Index, a non-profit online registry intended to help officers reunite cyclists and stolen bikes. (Paige Parsons/CBC)

City police hope to reunite more cyclists with their stolen bikes through a new partnership with an online registry.

Bike Index is anot-for-profit registry that allows people to create an online account for a bike, registering its serial number and other identifying details, as well as contact information for the owner.

"It's like free insurance for your bike," said Const. Dana Gehring, speaking at thelot in north Edmonton where police storerecovered bikes.

The new partnership with Edmonton Police Service means officers will be able to contact the owner directly if they recover a bike, whether or not it has already been reported stolen.

So far in 2019, 237 bike thefts have been reported to police.

In 2018, 1,530 bikes were reported stolen; only 50 were returned to owners. More than 1,000 were sent to auction because the owners couldn't be identified.

Gehring said police estimate the value of stolen bicycles at more than $1 million, but they know many thefts go unreported.

Police store hundreds of stolen and lost bikes at a lot in north Edmonton. (Gabrielle Brown/CBC)

It's disappointing to recover a bike whether it has beendumped in the river valley or seized during a bust at a drug house and not be able to return it to its owner,Gehring said.

"We are tracking these bikes down, we are finding the people that have stolen their bike. And without the citizen, we can't lay a charge against those who stole the bike, and we can't get it back to them."

If a user registers a phone number, police will be able to call if a bike is recovered. The phone number tied to the account will only be accessible to police, but anyone who finds the bike can use a smartphone to scan the QR code on the sticker, which will tell them if the bike has been listed as stolen, or allow them to message the owner advising them they found the bike.

Users have to first complete the registration to make the QR code on the sticker link to their account. Police are asking participants to place the sticker on the seat tube, facing out.

Edmonton police are asking cyclists to register their bikes with Bike Index, and to link their account to a coded sticker. (Paige Parsons/CBC)

Gehring said police believe the stickers might also act as a deterrent, discouraging would-be thieves. He said a similar registry program has helped decrease bike theft in Vancouver.

Cyclists interested in registering can pick up a registration sticker and information about signing up for the program at police stations, or at several local bike shops.