Dodgy bike sales on Gumtree

[rendelharris]

Just a timely warning/reminder: I've been looking out for a particular model of bike as a present for a friend; four times in the past week I have contacted sellers via Gumtree, and each time the seller has offered to meet at a bus station/carpark/street corner. Each time when I've said I'll only buy if I can collect from a residential address or place of employment, contact has ceased. Guess I may have been unlucky but having four hits in a row from those who are only prepared to sell in a clandestine manner would seem to indicate that a very high proportion of Gumtree bike sales are of stolen bikes. So really, just a plea from someone who's lost several well-beloved machines in the past, by all means buy bikes from Gumtree (I do, and sell through them as well), but always ask before going to get a bike that it be collected from a residence or place of work, or that the seller shows you some ID with an address on it, or that they show a bike shop receipt. Any honest and genuine seller will understand why. If we all did this I'm sure the scourge of bike thefts could be reduced dramatically!

Cheers,

Rendel

[siousxiesue]

I'm also suspicious that you may be conveniently mugged whilst waiting on a street corner carrying your cash ready for the sale.

[rendelharris]

siousxiesue Wrote:

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> I'm also suspicious that you may be conveniently

> mugged whilst waiting on a street corner carrying

> your cash ready for the sale.

Yes - or in the case of a mate who foolishly bought a guitar at a streetcorner meet and got mugged for the guitar about two minutes after the seller disappeared. He could never prove it was a setup but very suspicious timing.

[malumbu]

Rendel - I assume that you knew straight away that these are crims. One of my earliest threads was about a stolen bike that appeared on Gumtree that same evening, having used bolt croppers on a decent chain. The ad was taken straight from the website - no personal info on use, or reason for sale. Names are changed (but the phone number remains the same) and it is never 'their' bike, but a mates. Sadly even though it was clearly my bike, the police didn't follow up. A Met police Cycle Task Force was set up by TfL to help tackle cycle theft, but not seen any activity recently. I put the phone number of 'thief' on the thread and got two PMs from people outside our area who had the same problem. Now you have got me started.

[JohnL]

Soon it'll just be criminals left and they can meet, swap cash for goods, then mug each other.

It'll be fitting.

[rendelharris]

malumbu Wrote:

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> Rendel - I assume that you knew straight away that

> these are crims.

Not immediately, actually, as all the ads were quite genuine-sounding and knowledgeable; I know the ones where the spec is lifted straight from the manufacturer's website etc are easy to spot, but I reckon the more cunning ones are now cut and pasting from old genuine ads. That's why I insist on meeting at their residence and seeing proofs.

I know three people who've spotted their stolen bikes on eBay or Gumtree and asked the police to come along and nick the thief and been refused on the grounds that there wasn't enough evidence for the accusation (at least two of them were highly customised high-end road bikes which couldn't possibly have been anything but their own).

[ianr]

There are also frame numbers of course. But I suspect the main problem is that, as has been mentioned, a perp's assertion that they were just acting for a friend would probably on its own be enough to avoid any conviction for handling stolen goods. In choice cases though, I'd still like to see the police make an arrest where there was reasonable suspicion, and see where the subsequent investigation, searches and interview led. Bear in mind too that a conviction in the previous five years for handling can itself be admissible evidence in determining an accused's guilty knowledge. https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/theft-act-offences#a25

On another tack, has anyone asked the police simply to be in attendance, to maintain the Queen's peace while you reclaimed your clearly stolen property? It would look rather bad if they consistently refused and you then got marmalised.

[malumbu]

It felt pretty low priority to the bizzies even though it was clearly theft. I feel that e-bay has much better control of their sellers whereas Gumtree does not appear to need proper ID.

[malumbu]

Some PMs on the subject when I posted after getting my bike stolen and putting the number up from Gumtree on this Forum. Abridged extracts below, given no personal details away bar that they had had bikes stolen by the same person.

Hi there,

I had a bike stolen and sold on Gumtree by the same people that you reported.

I would like to catch these people, have reported it to the Met ........

Hi

Your message came up through my detective work.

I too have had my bike stolen - just a couple of days ago. I immediately started looking on gumtree and found 2 prospective thieves. One I called - see his advert below.

I called him - he swore at me, told me the bike had been sold and put the phone down. I then put his number into a google search and as well as finding loads of other adverts for bike sales, I found this thread.

.....

All a few years ago, and probably not of interest to most.

But FFS why Gumtree, the police, or some higher being couldn't do anything about it. OK calm now.

[amac]

Been a real spate lately. My black Scott hybrid (extra large frame) went from Catford station last week (I know, I know). I went straight to Gumtree and immediately got into a peculiar conversation with a very dodgy bloke who kept trying to Facetime me. He had a Scott hybrid for sale (and several other bikes, such as 'Doors' (sic, Dawes!)) but it was orange. I wondered if the pix they put up of the bike purportedly for sale are not of the actual bike.