A MAN HAS been arrested after gardaí seized 16 stolen bicycles with an estimated value of €7,000.

The arrest of the man, who is in his early 50s, took place after a planned operation by gardaí from the Crumlin area of Dublin.

The operation involved an arrangement to meet the seller of a stolen bike, which was advertised for sale online.

The man attended the scene with the stolen bicycle and was arrested after the bike’s owner identified it.

He was taken to Crumlin Garda Station, where he was later charged in relation to the seizure.

In a follow up search of a property in Dublin 8, a further 15 bicycles were recovered. All of the bikes are believed to have been stolen with an angle grinder.

Gardaí say they are working to identify the rightful owners of the stolen bikes.

“The items that are not returned to owners will be circulated via media in the coming weeks,” a garda spokesperson said.

Crime statistics obtained by Noteworthy show that almost 30,000 bike thefts have occurred in Ireland over the past five years, with an average of 70% of the thefts occurring in Dublin.

Noteworthy also found that bike theft involving violence or the threat of violence is growing.

An investigation found that there was a 65% increase in aggravated bike and scooter thefts in 2020. There were also 26 such incidents reported in the first two months of this year.

Comments are closed as the man has been charged.