As the weather warms up, citizens tend to use road bicycles as an affordable means of transport, allowing them to get to work, summer cottages, and garden plots.
As the weather warms up, citizens tend to use road bicycles as an affordable means of transport, allowing them to get to work, summer cottages, and garden plots. Owning a road bicycle, citizens forget about the security of their property and contribute to its theft by leaving their property unattended. As experience shows, bicycles are often stolen, especially if no protective measures are taken. How to protect your bicycle from theft and not attract the attention of intruders. After all, bicycles can be expensive, but inexpensive bicycles are also stolen, simply for a ride.
For the first 3 months of 2018, no bicycle thefts were registered in the Lepel district. However, 3 such thefts occurred during the same period in 2017. In most cases, bicycle thieves act in a standard manner – they cut through locks and cables of parked bicycles. This can happen anywhere, including near shops and on main streets. All traces of the thief disappear into the crowd, and the owner, left without their bicycle, may not know what to do or whom to contact. Bicycles are often stolen from children, and sometimes by other children who ask to borrow a bicycle from their peers and, of course, do not return it to the owner. Bicycle thefts also frequently occur in common areas of apartment buildings. Thieves take advantage of people's careless habit of leaving their two-wheeled transport in front of doors or in the stairwells of multi-story buildings. After checking one stairwell, they may take several bicycles at once.
Afterwards, the stolen bicycles are sold to fences, who then sell them at half price to unsuspecting citizens or dismantle them for parts.
Advice for bicycle owners:
1. Never leave your bicycle near markets, train stations, or other crowded places, or where teenage and youth groups are present.
2. Always secure your bicycle to immovable structures using special devices such as a "chain with a lock or a cable with a lock," even if you are only stepping away for a moment. Check the rack to which you are securing your bicycle. If it is a water pipe or a bin, ensure it is securely fastened.
3. A cable lock (they are sold at all markets) must have a built-in locking system (the lock itself, into which the key is inserted). A "wire + block" type lock is less effective.
4. Two types of locks can be used. Some thieves can easily open one lock, but two already present a problem.
5. Before your first trip, record the frame number (it is stamped on the bottom under the hub) and complete all bicycle ownership documents. This, of course, will not prevent theft, but will facilitate the search. If there is no number, you can engrave it with any text.
6. Do not forget your bicycle accessories on the bicycle, namely: hand luggage, wallets, mobile phones.
7. Try to secure the bicycle by the frame and by the wheel; if possible, remove the saddle.
8. Do not leave your bicycle for a long time (more than a few hours, especially at night) in unsecured premises.
9. Do not purchase a bicycle from strangers without documents for it.
Head of the Public Security Police Department of the Lepel District Department of Internal Affairs
Police Lieutenant Colonel
Mikhno I.A.