February 6, 2007

Expensive bicycles stolen from Campbell apartment balconies;
mystery deepens as numbers increase

There have been no witnesses, and no one except the thieves are privy to how it’s happening, but at least 19 high end—the majority worth $2,000 to $5,000—bicycles have been stolen from Campbell apartment balconies since late November. That’s balconies - as on second or third floors.

Lately, bicycles on apartment complex balconies are tempting targets for thieves. The Campbell Police Department suggests that apartment dwellers bring bikes into their homes or cover them so thieves can’t see what they are to prevent further thefts of the expensive two-wheeled vehicles. Photo by Carol Rosen

Most of the bikes have been taken in complexes around or near Union and Railway Avenues, although one just out of Campbell’s jurisdiction was taken from a Bascom Avenue apartment balcony. No one is sure how many people are taking the bikes, nor do the police know how they are being lowered to the ground.

“There’s no consistent pattern,” said Cindy Campbell, a civilian investigator for the Campbell Police Department. “Most appear to have happened overnight, when it’s dark. The most recent was on Jan. 31. Another happened about 5 a.m. when the owner heard a noise, but when he went out to investigate and look throughout the complex, there was no one there,” she said.

“It takes a bold burglar to climb up a balcony not knowing whether the person [who lives there] is home,” she added.
All of the bikes are high end. The lowest value was $500, the highest $5,000.

So far, Campbell said, no one is sure why or how this is happening. She wouldn’t speculate on whether the thieves were in gangs or if the thefts are drug related or being done to pay off gambling debts. She also wouldn’t speculate as to whether they were being dismantled and sold off as parts, but she did note that specific parts can command high prices. None of the bikes have been recovered.

Campbell police suggested that owners of expensive bikes take them into their apartments and not leave them on their balconies even if secured by chains and locks. If they must keep them on the balcony, owners should protect them with a cover so they cannot be identified from the street. Owners also should keep the bike’s serial number in a separate location.

–By Carol Rosen