Of cycle theft reported to The States of Jersey Police, the vast majority of bikes have been stolen from St Helier. Many were disappearing from street racks; some 165 pedal cycles were stolen between March 2013 and March 2014. The total value of those cycles: more than £100,000.
Hence Operation Locknut was launched by Jersey Police in March 2014 with the aim of raising awareness of bike crime and offering cyclists advice on how to secure bikes against theft using cycle locks. Officers also want to get every bike on the island marked and registered to BikeRegister.
Sergeant Paul Byrne said: “Our aim is to get as many pedal cycles as possible security marked and registered online, making life increasingly difficult for thieves. The process takes five minutes and means if the worst should happen we stand a better chance of reuniting you with your bike.”
Officers have also deployed the ‘staring eyes’ signs (as trialled by Newcastle University) as a deterrent to bike theft in car parks and on cycle racks around the town. A sponsorship deal with The Channel Islands Co-operative Society has helped to ensure Locknut’s work until 2017. More than 800 bikes have been marked.
The results: a 33 per cent reduction in cycle theft since March 2014 ; six people have been arrested on suspicion of bike theft; and two people have been prosecuted in cases that directly relate to the fact that the stolen bikes were marked and the real owner could be identified via BikeRegister.
