So earlier this week, the guys over at RideIt had an idea: solicit a motorcycle thief to do one of their Ask Me Anythings. First answered by a cop in London and later an actual bike thief from the US, the results are positively illuminating. Here, we’ve edited the material into something linear and easily digestible. It’s a must-read if you don’t want your bike to get stolen.
original Reddit link, though I recommend the condensed version above.
I can tell you that a lot of this stuff depends on where you are located, and that both of the methods describe theft complaints I have investigated. What one guy is dealing with in England may be different from what is going on stateside.
How to defeat Lojack type devices is common knowledge in that world. The thieves using trucks and vans tend to be targeting cheaper and lighter bikes that are unsecured. The chances of one of these bikes having locating beacons are nil.
The problem is this thief was a PRO. If a pro wants a bike, nothing can stop him. So his take on things is more sophisticated than most. I suspect most bike thefts are just amateur scumbags participating in a crime of opportunity. Stuff like a front wheel disc lock, a 12mm chain, and Lo-Jack probably works great to dissuade 99% of thieves. But not the 1% that are pros out there.
