Go buy something at Iron Cycles, or just give the people there a hug.

Just off the phone with the victim:

http://chicago.stolenbike.org/node/190060

Anytime a stolen bike makes it back to its true owner it warms the cockles of my heart, but this case is especially special as Jake is the son of my best friend's friend and her kids' regular playmate before they moved away-- first met him when he was maybe 5 or 6; he's also part of Chicago cycling's 'first family' (i.e. resident and product of Randy Nuefeld's hippy coop-commune home-schooling mafia.)

Hip hip hooray for Iron Cycles.

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Permalink Reply by A.K.A Paul on September 10, 2010 at 3:51pm
Very cool in deed!
Permalink Reply by Julie Aberman (Hochstadter) on September 10, 2010 at 5:10pm
Iron Cycles is having a ChiCross Cup party tomorrow, so you can party with them and buy stuff at the same time!

And yeah return of stolen bikes!!! That one hailed from my street (a couple of houses down).

Come celebrate the return of the bike with us next Sunday at our block party!

Randy will be doing some free tuneups and we could definitely use some more help! Anyone have an extra bike stand?

Permalink Reply by Leah on September 10, 2010 at 5:37pm
what a great story!! so glad it was recovered. :)
Permalink Reply by Fred Noinaj on September 10, 2010 at 6:01pm
I live 2 mins(by bike) away from Iron Cycles. Seriously my favorite shop. Those guys are awesome! I'm planning on stopping by tomorrow if i'm free.
Permalink Reply by Shawn C. on September 10, 2010 at 6:15pm
Great story! Iron Cycles is my local shop and they provide great service too!
Permalink Reply by Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! on September 11, 2010 at 4:56am
Julie, I've got a park stand y'all can use.
Permalink Reply by Seri97 on September 11, 2010 at 4:48pm
It was Brandon, the owner on Iron Cycles who detected something awry. As Brandon tells the story, "the individual wanted the antitheft skewers removed and it was a cannondale synapse or system six and the person did not know thier own bicycle. The individual would not leave the bicycle and the individual was kept busy while the bicycle was looked up via the serial number on the registry. The police were called once the serial number and description matched. The individual was arrested for being in possesion of stolen merchandise even though the individual did not steal it. ; )

M.A.R.K. said:
Great job to whoever at Iron Cycles knew about and checked the registry.. That fallow up story kick total ass.

For all the work and effort put into the registry, it's stories like these that gotta make you feel all sorts of warm inside Howard. Without it, this may never have been possible.
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on September 12, 2010 at 1:54am
Didn't the link say that the serial was filed off?
Permalink Reply by Brandon Elliott on September 12, 2010 at 3:25pm
Maybe I can provide some insight! :-D

The "owner" of the bike came in asking for the Pinhead wheel locks to be removed. He had a flat and no key. In the past, when people lost their key, they asked for a replacement, not to have the locks removed.

I stalled the guy, tried to get him to leave the bike, but he said he'd wait. I got on the computer and found the stolen bike listing easily. The serial number had been removed, but the picture of the bike made it clear it was the same bike (accessories, changed the bars, etc). I called the police and they arrived within 10 minutes.

The police took the bike since I couldn't prove by the serial number it was the same bike. Luckily the true owner did have the key to the Pinheads which obviously proved his ownership. He also knew every last detail down to the new FSA handlebars he had installed.

I have to say, I was a bit nervous being alone in the shop with this guy. Couldn't tell if he knew that I had called the police, and he was a much bigger guy than I am! It's too bad though, as I really believe he isn't the one who stole the bike, just the unlucky and not smart one to buy it in an alley and get caught with it.

Hopefully the true thief gets what he has coming to him.
Permalink Reply by Adam "Cezar" Jenkins on September 13, 2010 at 3:09am
This is why it's illegal to posses stolen goods. It discourages the purchase of stolen goods. It's usually left to the digression of the police if they should charge the person IIRC. The tougher police are to those who steal and those who buy stolen bikes they better off we will all be.
Permalink Reply by Brandon Elliott on September 13, 2010 at 3:13am
Excellent point. I felt a little bad for the guy who brought the bike in as he was cuffed and put into the back of the cop car, but your point is extremely valid. I would know better than to buy something out of the alley for a fraction of it's worth. And yes, the more the police crack down on possession of stolen goods the less likely it is people will buy stolen goods, reducing the reward in stealing something.

Adam "Cezar" Jenkins said:
This is why it's illegal to posses stolen goods. It discourages the purchase of stolen goods. It's usually left to the digression of the police if they should charge the person IIRC. The tougher police are to those who steal and those who buy stolen bikes they better off we will all be.
Permalink Reply by Far'arned Retrogrumpalunkus #63 on September 13, 2010 at 4:57am
At a certain point it is hard to tell what is stolen and what isn't. Sure, a whole bike with unmentioned pinlocks (and no key/tool to go with them) and the serial number filed off is a bit obvious.

But I like to snatch up bike parts at garage sales. People buy stuff with the intention of putting them on their bikes and never get around to it so I sometimes find like-new parts often with the decaying original packaging still partially attached. Other times people buy upgrades and keep the old parts around and finally sell them at a garage sale cheap. Either way it's a great way to find stuff at only a fraction of the new retail prices if you know what you are doing. Sometimes you get stuff that is harder to use. I've got a set of French 25mm-clamp drop bars that I'm still trying to figure out how to use. I don't carry a pair of calipers when I go garage sale shopping. Maybe I should!

Where many of those parts stolen or maybe just stuff people had laying around for years and their legitimate property? If it was in a huge pile of scrapped-out parts then maybe it could be fishy. But many other things aren't so cut and dry.

Can you just size someone up and tell by looking at him (or her) and the stuff he's got for sale and spot a thief? Or do we start getting into racial/classl profiling here? I'm cheap as hell and fairly allergic to buying retail, and I believe in the concept of Reduce, Re-use, & Recycle. Putting old unloved and unwanted bike parts back into service is a GOOD thing for the environment -but I wince at the thought that I could have just given money to a bike thief, and thus incentivized his behavior.

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