Southampton bike theft results in male from Portsmouth being cautioned

Between midnight and 9am on Tuesday, 3 August, a black and silver Trek Emonda SLR bike worth £4,000 was stolen from the balcony of a property in Hill Lane, Southampton.
Through social media police officers in Portsmouth’s High Harm Team managed to track down a bike fitting the same description to an address in Canal Walk, Portsmouth, and returned it to its rightful owner.
The person who was found in possession of the bike was cautioned and has been co-operating with officers as part of their enquiries.
While we’ve got your attention, here is some advice from police on how to keep your bike safe:
• Get an approved bike lock. Look for the Sold Secure logo on approved locks.
• Always lock your bike at home, even when it is in your garage.
• When out and about, lock your bike up in a secure location at a bike rack or lamp post
• Always lock your bike even if you’re only leaving it for a couple of minutes.
• Make the locked bike difficult to manoeuvre. Keep any gaps between the lock and bike frame small.
• If you have quick release wheels, lock them up too or take them with you.
• Remove lights from the bike and take them with you.
• Identify and register your bike with scheme Immobilise.
• Consider etching your postcode on to your bike frame.
• If using ride recording apps like Strava, start and finish recording a short way from home to deter thieves who may be using the app to target certain locations.
• If you have bike racks on your vehicle, remove them as this might be an indicator to thieves that a good quality bike is located at the property. If it is not practical to remove the racks, then ensure that your bicycle is securely locked and stored away.