*STOLEN GREEN TIKIT* Reunited and it feels so good ...

Dear all you amazing bike people ...

First, I am pleased to announce that the Green BF Tikit is back home!

Second, and perhaps more importantly, I am completely *overwhelmed* by how kind and generous and helpful you have all been. I had NO idea what an amazing community of folding bike folks there was out there.

I never IMAGINED what such a group watchdog effort could accomplish.

THANKYHOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU.

Go Team.

Pictured right: One of the photo spreads that appeared on the Craigslist post advertising the stolen bike for sale

Third, for those who are interested, (and in case it there is something to be learned) here is the update on the stolen bike story:

12/26/07 – Green BF Tikit was locked with a Bull Dog U-Lock through the frame to a bike rack on the UC Berkeley campus (south of VLSB). < 3hrs later it was gone with no sign of anything left behind. [See below for reasons why he didn't take it inside- Ed]

12/27/07 – I filed the case with the UCB police, posted an ad on Craigslist about my stolen bike, and Lynette posted the case to the bike community. [It was bicycle advocate and BF Club of San Francisco co-leader Jym Dyer who posted it to 8 other Bay Area listserves - Ed]

12/27 or 28/07 – Bill purchased the bike at the Oakland Coliseum flea market for $225.

12/30/07 – Bill posted it on Craigslist for $550 or best offer, and then contacted me the same day when he learned that I posted an ad saying my green tikit was stolen. (MANY THANKS TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO CONTACTED HIM). He inquired where on the frame he could find the serial number because he couldn’t find it. Also, he was confused because the photo I put in my CL ad was a stock photo from the BF website, and it did not look exactly like my bike (I had changed the seat, and my model had black, rather than silver fenders, as well as a front rack). When I did not email back (since I had no email access), he called and left a message on my phone with his contact info. (AGAIN, THANKS TO THE FOLKS WHO GAVE HIM MY PHONE NUMBER, since I neglected to include it in my CL ad.)

I spoke with Bill on the phone. He was very kind, told me the bike would be safe with him until I pick it up. I unfortunately would not be back to the Bay Area until the 11th, but my girlfriend, Jennifer, could pick it up earlier. To ensure the bike was safe, I told him I would gladly offer some cash for the bike. He never asked for any and just said, "don’t worry about that, we can figure it out when you get the bike"

1/2/08 – I spoke with Bill’s wife on the phone. She gave me their home address for picking up the bike. Meanwhile (while I still had no internet access) there was apparently a lot of talk/worry that Bill might be a "fence" (i.e., someone who is in with the theft operation and who plays dumb and pretends they didn’t know the bike is was stolen.

I called the UCB police officer who is responsible for this case. He ran a background check on Bill and said that there was nothing suspicious, and that the name and home address are real. It was his opinion that given the general story as well as some details of the case (e.g., that Bill both emailed and called me to say he had my bike, that he gave me his home address to pick it up, that his email had his legitimate full name), his gut feeling was that Bill is honest, that he accidentally bought a stolen bike, and that he is acting in good faith to get it back to me. Bill's wife mentioned to me on the phone that they often go to the flea market at the Colliseum to purchase things and then sell them on CL. The police officer said it should be fine for my girlfriend to go alone and pick up the bike.

1/3/08 – I call Bill to arrange a time to pick up the bike. He still never asks for money. I offer cash. He says, don’t worry about it. I say, no really, I’d be happy to reward you. He says, well what kind of cash reward were you thinking. I offered $100. He said, great. My girlfriend, Jenn, picks up the bike. Bill is really nice, helps her jump her car in the rain. In the end, we gave him $150.

1/4/08 – I contact the police officer to let him know I have the bike in hand, so now he can follow up with Bill, etc.

Regarding whether or not I should give Bill cash for the bike: The police officer (and others) said that legally I did not have to give him anything, and that legally Bill cannot ask me for anything.At the same time, if Bill is honest, it would not be illegal to give him some compensation to reward him for being honest and returning my bike. In other words, there is the legal component and the ethical component.Then there is the strategic component. My priority was to get the bike back and learn what we can from the case to (hopefully) prevent similar thefts from occurring.

I also had a gut feeling that Bill was honest and that he did not intentionally buy a stolen bike. Given that, we (the police and I) decided that I would first get the bike, offer Bill some cash to reward him for being honest, and then *after* I have the bike in hand, the police officer will contact Bill to follow up on the flea market vendor where he purchased the bike, where that vendor purchased it, etc. Again, it would be totally legal for me to simply go and take back the stolen goods, but my choice was to trust that Bill made an honest mistake and deserves some cash reward for returning the bike. I hope that helps. I’ll let you know if the police find anything more about the flea market vendor.

Thank you again for all your support and all your help. That really was an amazing group effort.

- Eric

UPDATE Feb 6, 2008: From Eric

The last I spoke with the cop, he had not been able to reach Bill,  who "found' my bike. Bill didn't return calls, and the cop did not seem motivated to go to Bill's house and talk with him. It seems that the police don’t put much effort into following up on bike theft cases ... especially when you get the bike back. Thanks again for all your help.every time i tell the story to friends, they are amazed at the response of the bike community.

BUT IT FOLDS ... WHY DIDN'T HE TAKE IT INSIDE?

A number of people have emailed me with the same question. I’m still a bit confused exactly how it happened. I locked the main frame of the bike (the thick cross bar) to a u-shaped bike rack with a Bull Dog U-Lock (the stubby model). <3hrs later it was gone (between 10 am and 1pm). There was no sign of a broken lock or anything. In fact, I kept staring at the spot wondering if I had indeed locked my bike there.

It was a very quiet day on the UCB campus (26 December) – not many bikes in the parking area, not many people walking around. Quiet enough of a day that as I locked my bike, I thought, hmmm this bright green new bike sure does stand out here. I considered folding it and bringing it inside, but had recently been reprimanded for bringing a bike in the building, so I didn’t. [The tikit on Trial experiment in NYC tested the velophobia in a selection of office, commercial and public buildings - Ed]

I guess the lesson there is to always listen to the little voice in your head that says, "hmmm not a good idea."

Other news folks might be interested in:If you purchase your bike with a credit card, it is very likely that you have insurance on the card that will pay the deductible for your property insurance.In my case, my property insurance has $1000 deductible, and the Mastercard folks said they will likely pay all of that - Eric