A man-woman theft team has stolen at least a dozen bikes in the Loop by sawing through locks, police said Saturday. All of the thefts have taken place while bikes were left unattended but secured, during morning and afternoon hours.
Surveillance video captured one theft in which a man used an electric saw to cut through a bike lock while the woman served as lookout, according to an alert from Area Three detectives. After the lock was compromised, the man rode away on the bike, and the woman walked off in the opposite direction. Police did not describe the couple.
A dozen bike thefts have been connected to the pattern:
- in the first block of East Madison at 9 a.m. on September 16
- in the 100 block of North Clark between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. on September 16
- in the 100 block of South Michigan between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. September 22
- in the first block of West Washington between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m. on October 3
- in the first block of West Jackson between 9 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on October 5
- in the 300 block of South Wacker between 12:30 p.m. and 1:50 p.m. on October 7
- in the 100 block of South Wacker between 9:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. on October 12
- in the first block of South Clinton between 4:30 p.m and 5:30 p.m. on October 13
- in the 1100 block of South Canal at 8:45 a.m. on October 16
- in the first block of West Washington at 11 a.m. on October 17
- in the first block of North Wacker at 5 p.m. on October 30
- in the 100 block of North Wacker between 11:45 and 11:55 a.m. on November 2
Police are advising people to pay attention to suspicious people near locked bikes in the downtown area. They also encourage bike owners to register their bicycles and keep records with receipts, serial numbers, and photos to make it easier to recover their property if it’s stolen.
Anyone with information about the bike thieves can contact Area Three detectives at 312-744-8263 regarding crime pattern 20-3-195A.