A custom cargo bike belonging to Capital Bike that was stolen early Tuesday has been recovered in pieces.
Victoria police said Wednesday a member of the public located the bike.
The bike was found abandoned in pieces in Topaz Park with the help of a “magical internet person,” who saw the online posts about the stolen bike and went out looking for it, said Adam Krupper, executive director of Capital Bike.
The person called police when he found the bike parts, and officers alerted Capital Bike. Staff went to the park to collect the parts.
“There were parts, like, strewn everywhere… The staff were hunting through the bushes and they were hunting, looking, digging through the grass. And they just kept on finding more and more little bits and pieces here and there,” Krupper said.
The bike, which had been electrified last month, had been stripped of all its electronics and the motor. It will cost $2,500 to electrify it again, Krupper said.
Capital Bike doesn’t have the money to repair the bike after sinking $2,500 into it just last month, he said.
The registered charity has launched a donation page at https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/capitalbike/ to collect funds to repair the bike.
The cargo bike was locked up outside the charity’s Hillside Avenue office with two expensive locks when it was taken. Video footage showed a man attempt to break the locks with a grinder and then using a large wrench to snap the locks before taking the bike away.
Krupper said he no longer feels comfortable locking the bike up outside, and Capital Bike is seeking a storage space in the Quadra-Hillside area to keep the bike safe overnight.
>>> To comment on this article, write a letter to the editor: [email protected]
