Three days, three bikes, three thefts

[Ginchiyo Tachibana]

Wednesday, Aug 22, 2012
The New Paper

Three days, three bikes, three thefts

By Zaihan Mohamed Yusof

SINGAPORE - What are the odds of someone having his three bicycles stolen on three consecutive days?

Yet this happened to a man in his 60s who had parked his bicycles at Choa Chu Kang MRT station last year, said bicycle shop owner Low Yeow Poh.

Mr Low, 53, of Poh Cycle in Choa Chu Kang, said the thefts happened even though his customer had locked his bicycles to a rack.

"People can get struck by lightning twice, but to get your bicycles stolen three days in a row is almost unheard of," he said.

Mr Low shared his story with The New Paper in the wake of the crime figures released by the police last week.

The figures show that bike thefts have increased by about 50 per cent to 752 cases in the first half of this year from 492 cases in the same period last year.

The man, who had bought a bicycle for $90 from Mr Low's shop, returned and told him the bike had gone missing.

He bought another bike, also for $90, but returned to the shop the following day with the same tale of woe.

He bought his third bike, which also turned out to be his last after that bike was also stolen. "After that, the uncle gave up cycling," said Mr Low.

He added that he hears from his customers about a bicycle being stolen every day.

Mr Low said that some stolen bike cases go unreported because "people don't see how making a police report will help them get their bikes back".

The police said the areas commonly targeted by bike thieves are MRT stations and HDB estates.

Chatter in local bike forums and blogs names hot spots where thieves have struck - Pasir Ris, Admiralty and Tampines MRT stations.

Last year, a 24-year-old man was said to have made more than $3,000 selling 157 stolen bicycles in Yishun. He was jailed for four months.

In 2010, the police nabbed a man in his 50s for stealing 60 bicycles from HDB estates in Hougang, Serangoon and Sengkang.

The New Paper checked out the bike situation at Admiralty MRT station last week.

A staff member at Cash Converters recalled at least three occasions in the last year when victims of bike thefts asked him if anyone had tried to sell stolen bicycle to the store.

They had lost their bikes after parking them at the row of bike racks next to the MRT station opposite the store.

Madam Julia Png, 46, knows what it's like to be a victim.

In the last two years, she has had three bicycles, which she shared with her husband, stolen after leaving them locked at the MRT station.

Each time, the thieves had cut her bicycle cable lock.

Madam Png's fourth bicycle is an "ugly" one, which she hopes there isn't a market for.

Added the accounts executive: "What choice do we have? You put a lock on and secure the bicycle to the rack and it still gets stolen."

The thieves don't care if the bikes are used or new, cheap or expensive, said Mr Sebastian Yeo of 7 Cycle in Yishun.

Mr Yeo, 25, said 80 per cent of the 1,800 bikes he sold last year - priced between $200 and a few thousand dollars - were reported stolen by their owners.

Good locks help

Mr Yeo added: "We sell about 150 bikes, new and used, each month. Yet the majority (of customers) seldom invest in good locks. In essence, bicycle owners are the ones to blame."

Mr Low agreed that it was sad that his customers would rather buy a cheap $5 lock.

He said that the better locks cost more than $20. The recommended ones are U-locks or those fitted with a motion-sensor siren.

Other measures to discourage bike theft include tamper-proof identification labels for bicycles and improved bike racks.

Shops like 7 Cycle and Poh Cycle keep a logbook whenever they buy used bicycles.

They jot down the sellers' particulars in case they are required to help in police investigations later, said Mr Yeo. He said his company has had this practice for the last 15years.

Perhaps the problem persists because of some cyclists' bad habits.

At Admiralty MRT, about half of the few hundred bicycles parked there were not secured to anchor points or bike racks.

They seemed like easy pickings for thieves.

Unsecured bikes were also seen under overhead bridges, near bus stops and against walls.

Mr Rajesh Waran, 34, a technician from India, said: "There's simply not enough bike racks for every one."

TNP observed that most of the bike racks at the three main parking areas around the MRT station were filled except for a handful.

The afternoon TNP was there, Mr Rajesh locked his bicycle wheel-to-wheel with his colleague's bicycle.

Mr Rajesh, who has worked here for 12 years, said: "I'm counting on the busy walkway to deter thieves. After my bicycle was stolen previously, I now mark my bicycle parts.