CORAL GABLES, Fla. – During Local 10 News' last Neighborhood Crime Alert, Andrew Perez exposed an elaborate burglary ring going on in the Pinecrest area.
This time, instead of homes and businesses, it's bicycles that thieves are targeting.
The crime has become such a problem in Miami and Coral Gables that a task force was setup to take these crooks down.
"What we're hearing from our detectives is that they're pawning the bikes," said Coral Gables police Officer, Kelly Denham. "They're taking them out of our city through various means of transportation."
The police department said it started seeing increases in bike thefts last year and believes crooks are going out of their way to make the pricey grabs.
"You don't have to be a professional bike rider to have a nice bike," said Denham. "Some of these bikes are $300 to $5,000."
Surveillance cameras were rolling on a bike thief who broke into the underground garage of a Coral Gables condo.
The suspect is seen carrying large bolt cutters and manages to take off with two bicycles early in the morning.
Detectives in the city started placing decoy bikes with trackers built into them in an effort to fight back against the trending crime.
Investigators tracked the stolen bikes, and learned that criminals were using the Metrorail and county buses to take them to pawn shops in an effort to sell the stolen goods.
In a little over a year, Coral Gables police have made at least 30 arrests using decoy bikes which are strategically placed at parking garages, apartments and public areas.
But police said many cases have yet to be solved. Authorities are encouraging the public to stay alert.
Tips to prevent bicycle thefts:
- Take a photo of your bicycle
- Write down the serial number so police can identify it, should it end up at a pawn shop
- Bike thieves have admitted to police that they will not target a bike that has a heavy duty U-lock around it.
- Police said the crime has become so popular because the thieves think it's easy.
Authorities encourage citizens to report suspicious activity, reminding the public that if something seems out of place, it probably is.
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