any advice on avoiding stolen bikes

[grover1979]

the bike was bought to sell i paid a reasonable amount for it in my eyes and had to do some work to get it to a sellable condition
the rightful owner had seen it up for sale and recognised it as his bike and as a consequence informed the police. i have bought and sold pushbikes as a passtime for a while and have always been rigorous with my checks checking areas before even jumping in the car to look at the bike as well as forums ect to see if anything similar has been stolen in that locality the laptop and phone were taken as they were buying and selling means and would contain info and they took my bikes just because they could

 

[john]

Bad news on getting the full treatment from the Police. However given you were selling stolen goods (albeit without your knowledge) then this is not 100% surprising. I suspect a genuine thief would also proclaim his / her innocence.

i have bought and sold pushbikes as a passtime for a while and have always been rigorous with my checks checking areas before even jumping in the car to look at the bike as well as forums ect to see if anything similar has been stolen in that locality the laptop and phone were taken as they were buying and selling means and would contain info and they took my bikes just because they could

What's a pushbike?

If you are buying and selling to make money then it's a risk you'll have to accept. Sounds like you have done what research you can and covered yourself by getting full details of the seller.

 

[grover1979]

the fact is this is an occupational hazard for any one buying and selling bikes wether it is bought and sold straight away or used for a number of years and then sold the risk is there and as well as seeking further advice to see if there was anything i could have further done to avoid this situation i felt my story should be shared with like minded people if this stops someone else going through what i have then it would have been worth posting this.
I feel some comments on here have been somewhat judgemantal the truth of the matter is this can happen to anyone of us as it did to me
cycling is an expensive hobby which a lot of people do a little bit of trading to help pay for.
this situation has caused me a lot of upset and health problems along the way please people be safe when buying and selling you can never be 100% safe end of dispute i think think of it what you like i am just like the rest of you and not a criminal
may he who is without sin cast the first stone lol

 

[legrandefromage]

I carefully point out that I have been 'buying and selling' bicycles of all types since about 1989 and have never in all those years even been approached by the Police in any way shape or form.

Sounds like you were set up by somebody.

 

[sylus]

Hi, Somethings don't look right to me

the fact is this is an occupational hazard for any one buying and selling bikes wether it is bought and sold straight away or used for a number of years and then sold the risk is there and as well as seeking further advice to see if there was anything i could have further done to avoid this situation i felt my story should be shared with like minded people if this stops someone else going through what i have then it would have been worth posting this.

I must admit also to being puzzled as to why they took your phone and laptop for the first enquiry especially as you say you had a reciept with the sellers name and address and kept you in the cells so long

I feel some comments on here have been somewhat judgemantal the truth of the matter is this can happen to anyone of us as it did to me

Not so much judgemental sir just slightly puzzled ....if you've been into buying and selling for years then terms like pushbikes is an odd one, also much of the safeguards you would know and have said them so the reason for the post is not as obvious as you feel ...I feel anyway

end of dispute i think think of it what you like i am just like the rest of you and not a criminal may he who is without sin cast the first stone lol

this to me just adds to the confusion :?

 

[greenstiles]

All the the materials that go to make up a bike are stolen from the earth anyway man ......seriously though, when we buy frames or forks or parts on here, how can you ever know for sure they were not stolen at some point then changed hands many times in good faith ..it's a tough one.

 

[grover1979]

well stylus i hope the same thing happens to you someday as then you will understand victims of crime come in all shapes and sizes someone who unwittingly buys a stolen item only to learn of this when plod knocks on the door is as much a victim as the person who have had their goods stolen in the first place there are many stolen bikes out there most of which someone is riding around thinking themself as the rightful owner i had wished to warn others of the hard line the police now take as i had my £2500 road bike taken as part of the enquiry and was as upset as anyone else would be the warrant stated all pushbike related items thats where my terminology which seems to have caused so much upset comes on oh well you keep your head firmly buried in the sand and hope it doesnt happen to you someday

 

[suburbanreuben]

Plod took you in? Weren't you allowed access to a lawyer?
He/she'd have had your bikes out of there in a trice.

 

[grover1979]

yes i had a solicitor who was quite gobsmacked i was being treated in this way i and solicitor had contacted many times before my bail date only to be told they can keep as long as they liked as i say my health was affected but a buyer of stolen goods is treated as a criminal no matter what the circumstances

 

[sylus]

well stylus i hope the same thing happens to you someday

Why thank you .....but if it does your playing the victim enough for both of us so I won't be too worried

I said something doesn't feel right and pointed out that the receipt you say you had would have easily been able to prove along with the original advert quite quickly that you bought it in good faith and given police a correct direction to follow up with the seller. The fact you claim you were arrested, they took your mobile and computer just to me seems very peculiar

anyway, because something doesn't feel right about what you have said in here I've leave my input here.