Bike theft victims 'flabbergasted' at Colchester thefts

Saskia Stickings, 18, had cycled to Queen Street in February when a gang of six men approached her and remarked “that’s a nice bike, isn’t it?” whilst she was locking it up.

The thugs then yanked it of her, leaving her without a bike to get home.

Miss Stickings’s mum, Mari Keskula, has spoken to the Gazette after a Freedom of Information request revealed there were more bike thefts in Colchester than any other police district in the county in 2023.

She said: Well, I'm not surprised by the number based on what I see on what I see on Colchester Facebook groups.

"Every day it seems there's a bike stolen.

"My daughter got no support from police whatsoever. They didn't even ring her to check if she was OK, even after a face to face theft. I'm flabbergasted.

"I understand it's a small crime, but I don't even know what to say.

"I worked in the system and I know how it works.

"I feel bad for the police officers because they don't get support from anyone either. It's a very sad world we're living in and I feel the police are getting a really bad rep because of it. But I'm shocked by the figures. I'm really, really shocked."

Frustrated – Saskia Stickings would use the electric bike every day to get to work in the city centre (Image: Mari Keskula)

Ms Keskula said she feared many people did not report bike thefts so the figures could be higher. 

She added: A lot of people don't report bike thefts. This figure could be a lot higher. This is probably the tip of the iceberg. You have more hope posting in Facebook groups than by going to the police.

"Deal with your murders and crack cocaine, but small crimes still need to be investigated. And these people are known to the police, people who commit crime allowance the time."

There was a happy ending for Miss Stickings bike theft. 

Broken – the electronics from the bike had been stolen by the gang who took the bike, Ms Keskula said (Image: Mari Keskula)

Days after it was stolen a member of the public said they saw a man riding exactly the same bike – a Claude Butler Glide – before confronting them and ordering them to return it.

The man then messaged Ms Keskula to tell her the bike had been found, and offered to keep it safe until Miss Stickings could pick it up from an address in Greenstead.

When Miss Stickings arrived to pick up the bike, however, she found it had been badly damaged, and it took her two hours to walk it back to her home because it could not be ridden safely.

Police 'committed to ensuring people’s possessions are secure across the whole of the county'

Essex Police have insisted they are committed to tackling bike thefts in Colchester, despite the city experiencing more incidents than anywhere else in the county.

A Freedom of Information request submitted by the Gazette revealed there were 432 bike thefts recorded in Colchester last year, with only two being solved.

A spokesman for Essex Police has now shared advice on precautions cyclists should take when leaving their bike, including double locking it, registering it on a national bike registration database approved by Secure by Design, and making sure it is security marked.

He said: “We are committed to ensuring people’s possessions are secure across the whole of the county, including Colchester, we are implementing lots of activities to tackle this crime.

“The most important thing to remember is, double lock your bike and register the frame number.”

He continued: “If your bike has been stolen, contact us as soon as possible by reporting online.

“Give us your frame number, cycle database number, a photo and any other details and make sure you update the status on the cycle database where you registered it.

“The sooner we know, the sooner we can act, which might stop it being sold on.”