Burglars breaking into sheds to steal Christmas bikes, police in Cottingham warn

BURGLARS have been breaking into sheds across Cottingham in a bid to steal bikes bought as Christmas presents.

Village police have seen an unusually high number of shed burglaries in the past few weeks.

Criminals have been targeting homes in the Endike Lane and Bricknell Avenue area.

PC Steve Morley, of Cottingham neighbourhood policing team, said: "We've had a number of sheds and garages broken into overnight in the past week – more than we would normally expect.

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"Somebody has been out and about and pedal cycles are being taken."

Officers think the thieves are capitalising on Christmas, hoping to steal bikes bought for children.

PC Morley said: "It being after Christmas, they expect kids to have new bikes."

Some bicycles are taken by organised gangs and once stolen they are hard to trace.

PC Morley said: "In my experience, stolen bikes can go anywhere.

"The ones that have been recovered have ended up not too far away, in north Hull or on the Orchard Park estate.

"The thieves will approach somebody on the street and ask if they want to buy one cheaply."

One BMX stolen from a back garden in Cottingham in September was worth £8,000.

It was broken down into parts, most of which were recovered by police from within the village.

Sometimes the bicycles can go much further afield.

PC Morley said: "In the past, others have been stolen to order.

"They get passed on to a handler, who is responsible for a large operation and can go out of the force area."

Police offer a postcode-marking service for bikes, allowing them to be tracked more effectively if taken.

PC Morley said: "We engrave the postcode somewhere on the bike.

"It's sprayed with a lacquer to prevent it from rusting and we put a sign on the frame to say it is postcoded and marked."

In the East Riding, police also offer owners a bicycle passport.

It includes a photograph of the bike and space for the owner to write a description.

Every bike also has a unique number on its frame. If owners make a note of the number, it can be used to prove the bike is theirs.