Bike Thief PHOTO: stealing Red Specialized @ 165 N Canal 9/23

Forwarded from a friend. She wasn't able to do enough to stop him, but did get a photo of a man stealing a bike across from 165 N Canal.

Apparently, he took the tire off the bike that was locked via ulock to a pole, put a new one on and rode away.

Stray Observations:

  1. Pass this on to people you know who had a bike (or tire) stolen yesterday. Perhaps it will bring them joy, anger, closure or all of the above.
  2. PLEASE LOCK YOUR BIKE BETTER. Holy crap people. Resource: http://www.activetrans.org/commute/tricks-tips/parking
  3. He obviously stole a front tire from another bike and then helped himself which totally settles the "what the hell do these people do with one tire"question I've always had.
  4. Memorize this face and if you see him walking around with a bike part, call the police and start yelling at him so people will start looking. (Insert warning about being REALLY SURE THIS IS THE SAME PERSON - the missing front teeth and glasses are helpful.)
  5. Please don't do the chainlink troll thing and yell about my friend not chaining herself to the bike and pulling a batman on this crook. You weren't there, you don't know my friend and until you earn some sincere bike thief vigilante street cred - shut up.

Sorry if # 4 was ugly or presumptuous. I'm just tired of the non constructive discussions and honestly don't have time for it.

BOO BIKE THIEVES!

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Skip Montanaro 0mi on September 25, 2013 at 8:21am

The difficulty connecting a bike with its owner and having the necessary evidence of a crime makes a sting operation attractive. I don't think you want random John Q. Citizen types conducting stings, so you have to convince CPD that's a worthwhile effort. Some police departments are doing this. I don't know what it would take to get something like this off the ground in Chicago.

Permalink Reply by in it to win it 8.0 mi on September 25, 2013 at 8:31am

Lock up correctly...then you don't need a gun, mace, baseball bat...

I don't know what the solutions to this problem are.



Marcus Moore said:

Do you mean like stop and frisk?  What about the non-punks carrying "spare wheels" (jk- joke).  

Have you ever been stopped, searched or detained by cops for "looking suspicious"?  It's not fun-let me assure you.  That kind of action can actually hurt community respect for the police.

Aside from that- I don't know what the solutions to this problem are.  Theft is a frustrating problem- for sure.


Dean Bekken said:

I see groups of punks - 2 to 3 to a group - riding around with "spare" wheels on their backs. Can we trouble the CPD to ask these kids where they live, maybe follow them home?
Permalink Reply by Marcus Moore on September 25, 2013 at 10:00am

Sorry, here's something that might be more constructive than my previous comment:

Most people riding with wheels strapped to their bags are legitimate owners of those wheels.  Some people are taking them to/from a bike shop, a friend's place, a race or where ever.  If you see someone riding with spare wheels- it isn't usually a bad thing.

Now, back to the original topic...

Rebecca- sorry to hear about your friend's bad experience.  That must have been a frightening situation to be in, not knowing what was going to happen, the possibility of assault, etc.  I hope she's feeling "ok" after that.

Thanks for sharing.

Marcus Moore said:

Do you mean like stop and frisk?  What about the non-punks carrying "spare wheels" (jk- joke).  

Have you ever been stopped, searched or detained by cops for "looking suspicious"?  It's not fun-let me assure you.  That kind of action can actually hurt community respect for the police.

Aside from that- I don't know what the solutions to this problem are.  Theft is a frustrating problem- for sure.


Dean Bekken said:

I see groups of punks - 2 to 3 to a group - riding around with "spare" wheels on their backs. Can we trouble the CPD to ask these kids where they live, maybe follow them home?
Permalink Reply by Andrew Bedno on September 25, 2013 at 10:15am

Guns AND Cars have no place in civilized society.  EACH kills nearly an entire 9/11 worth of poor souls EVERY MONTH!
The causal link between gun availability and chance of gunshot death is well established on state and national levels.  Stop dragging us into your overcompensating dystopian musings.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gavin-magrath/gun-control-debate_b_23...

Permalink Reply by Bez on September 25, 2013 at 10:41am

No! You're wrong! Concealed carry is totally going to turn the tide of violence in Chicago!  The crooks will be scared to confront ANYONE for fear of getting shot!  They totally won't start shooting first "just in case"!

Also, those of us who totally don't understand how things work in a reality based existence will be able to shoot brown people with impunity, like Saint Zimmerman did!

h' 1.0 said:

Additionally. there are tragic stories in the news =every single day= of "accidental" gun deaths (kids killing their fathers, themselves, each-other, dogs shooting their owners, etc.) but try to find one story where a civilian carrying a gun actually thwarted a violent crime and you have to dig -very- deep.

 

 

Andrew Bedno said:

Guns AND Cars have no place in civilized society.  EACH kills nearly an entire 9/11 worth of poor souls EVERY MONTH!
The causal link between gun availability and chance of gunshot death is well established on state and national levels.  Stop dragging us into your overcompensating dystopian musings.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gavin-magrath/gun-control-debate_b_23...

Permalink Reply by Josh L. on September 25, 2013 at 5:19pm

What fascinates me about the photo is evidently the age of this guy. Based on film of guys who stole my previous bike, and the wonderful  6 juveniles who were caught removing my wheel this summer on the LFP at Wilson, I assumed bike thieves were disproportionately on the younger side,,,say 30 and younger. This guy looks older than that.  

As noted, his approach of stealing another tire to grab this bike is also really interesting. 

Permalink Reply by Skip Montanaro 0mi on September 26, 2013 at 1:51am



jolondon30 said:

As noted, his approach of stealing another tire to grab this bike is also really interesting. 

Which makes the "I don't need to lock my front wheel, just the back and the frame" approach a bit suspect. You might be not only risking losing your front wheel, but helping promote the theft of someone's bike nearby who thought locking the front wheel up real well would deter theves.

Permalink Reply by El Dorado on September 26, 2013 at 6:02am

You people advocating for shooting a bike thief probably always want marijuana legalized. It's insane what this city is coming to. We need less guns and pot not more.

Permalink Reply by We all have an inner Beast... on September 26, 2013 at 12:25pm
No offense....but...who the hell plays hide-n-seek with a flippin gun ? Much less a loaded gun !
So, the guy's stupid girfriend plays with a loaded gun and shoots him...another flippin genius.
The other guy gets shot due to road rage...I guess he was not aggravating the driver that shot him? I bet he kept cutting the guy off, or speeding up to not let him get in front of him. (Granted, I don't think that is a reason to get upset...I just let people get in front of me all the time...except when I'm riding my bike, Lol !)
Either way, to those that think that pepper spray is going to stop something...think again. The thief may already have a gun (since only the criminals can carry one around these daggum parts) and just may feel that you have "assaulted" them and may just shoot to defend themselves. Or maybe the thief is allergic to the pepper spray or has some COPD/bronchial/breathing issues and dies from your pepper spray....all over a bike?
Now, as a retired military guy, I know that during my 23 yrs in 2 branches of the military, that there are people on this planet that should not be trusted to chew gum because they might swallow it and choke to death...much less be allowed ANYWHERE near a weapon of any sorts. That being said, a properly trained individual with a weapon can make a "bad guy" think twice about what they were about to do.
Now mind you, you will very rarely hear about an off-duty law enforcement officer even get involved in any issue, much less in any issue that could have him/her brandishing their weapon. So, take that into account.
So now you all can start the barrage of criticism of my comments....but remember, I never said gun when I made my suggestions, only in my sarcastic comments towards the person that grew up in TX.
A gun is just another tool that people choose to misuse. You can be killed by a bat, axe, chain saw, car, brick, kicked to death, punched in the wrong/right place, knife (kitchen, folding, hunting, box cutter, straight razor, fixed blade, survival, etc..), screwdrivers, scissors (remember not to run with them), nail gun, hammer, bottle (both broken or whole), various types of ropes or wires, and of course while riding our bikes, walking down stairs, falling out of windows or off of porches, flying in a n aircraft, on and on and on and on......
It is up to the user/operator to use common sense and some thought while using/operating the tool. (Like a wood chipper)
If you plan to do harm to someone, and are serious enough about it, you will find a way.
When you go through a firearms class, you learn to see what is around the target, what is in front of and what is behind the target. You HAVE to know what is down range BEFORE you send a round out. It's not something that everyone will be able to do. It's a huge responsibility. Not to be taken lighty.
Lethal Force is only authorized if your life or the life of someone else is at risk. Not the theft of a bicycle or even a car.
THAT is the first thing that should be going through someone's mind.
To stop this guy, I would probably have used a rolled up Redeye (the one with all the inserts...lol!)
Btw, he has done this type of stuff at other buildings in the downtown area. People please learn to secure your bicycles better, and call CPD if you see it going on. If you can get people's attention, do it ! It may stop him.

Rebecca said:

I grew up in Texas. lots of guns......I personally knew several people that died due to gun violence/mistakes. If I was a teenager in the South Side, this list would probably be a lot longer.

RIP friends

  • Thomas, 13 - shot in the head while playing hide and go seek with his 4 year old brother. He was consistently 5th chair in the trumpet section of our band.
  • Dustin, 16 - shot in the face by his girlfriend who was joking about the gun not being loaded. He was on the pep squad.
  • Jeremy, 18 - shot in a road rage incident on highway 75 when he and another car kept cutting each other off, would have gone to the funeral - but it was on 9/11. He was awesome at technical theater.

I think I'd totally be for guns if their weren't so many undeserving, unintended, innocent victims out there.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/04/11/guns-child-dea...

Permalink Reply by Josh L. on September 26, 2013 at 3:37pm

agreed..I get lazy and dont lock my front tire,,especially if the rack is crowded.  But now I se how this could enable more crime.  

Skip Montanaro 12mi said:



jolondon30 said:

As noted, his approach of stealing another tire to grab this bike is also really interesting. 

Which makes the "I don't need to lock my front wheel, just the back and the frame" approach a bit suspect. You might be not only risking losing your front wheel, but helping promote the theft of someone's bike nearby who thought locking the front wheel up real well would deter theves.

Permalink Reply by S on September 26, 2013 at 5:37pm



We all have an inner Beast... said:

No offense....but...who the hell plays hide-n-seek with a flippin gun ? Much less a loaded gun !
Well, according to her post, it was a 4 year old kid that did the shooting.  He probably got the gun somehow and didn't understand what it was or how dangerous it could be.  Not either kid's fault, I'd say the parents were to blame for leaving a gun, much less a loaded one, somewhere that their kids could get to.

So, the guy's stupid girfriend plays with a loaded gun and shoots him...another flippin genius.
Yeah, the girl might be an idiot but that's not the guy's fault.  

A gun is just another tool that people choose to misuse. You can be killed by a bat, axe, chain saw, car, brick, kicked to death, punched in the wrong/right place, knife (kitchen, folding, hunting, box cutter, straight razor, fixed blade, survival, etc..), screwdrivers, scissors (remember not to run with them), nail gun, hammer, bottle (both broken or whole), various types of ropes or wires, and of course while riding our bikes, walking down stairs, falling out of windows or off of porches, flying in a n aircraft, on and on and on and on......
The other methods would kill someone but it's a lot harder to kill or be killed by a bat or axe than it is with a gun.

If you plan to do harm to someone, and are serious enough about it, you will find a way.
When you go through a firearms class, you learn to see what is around the target, what is in front of and what is behind the target. You HAVE to know what is down range BEFORE you send a round out. It's not something that everyone will be able to do. It's a huge responsibility. Not to be taken lighty.

Yes, people will find another way to do harm without a firearm.  But it's a lot harder to kill someone or go on a rampage if you're using a knife or a bat or some other implement.  Firearms provide an easy way to quickly maim or kill someone at a distance without much effort.  
People may have been taught to see what's around a target and checking what's downrange but doing that on a shooting range is a lot different than doing that in stressful situation that doesn't have the ideal visual conditions.  And I doubt many people train to be able to accurately assess the situation and fire in a controlled manner when under stress and in less than ideal conditions. 
Permalink Reply by Bill Nedza on September 27, 2013 at 2:51am

I agree using pepper spray (or similar) is the best idea, but in Chicago there are limitations, see below. Personally, if someone tries to steal my bike a well-placed kick between the legs or a solid punch to the face would be my preferred way of dealing with the issue.

ILLINOIS:  Legal with restrictions.  The use of Pepper Spray is legal for carrying by a person 18 years of age or older. In the City of Chicago    (a) No person shall use any device to discharge a noxious gas or liquid in an enclosed room in any Class C-1 or Class C-2 Assembly Unit, as defined in Chapter 13-56 of this Code, or in an enclosed room in any restaurant, bar or tavern that is a Class F Assembly Unit as defined in that chapter, if more than 20 persons are present in that room, unless the person is a peace officer, as defined in Section 8-20-30* of this Code, engaged in law enforcement activity. As used in this section, “noxious gas or liquid” means mace, pepper spray or any other substance that is intended or designed to cause irritation to the eyes, nose or mouth, or to cause nausea.

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