Men steal bikes by riding them out store’s front door

A string of bicycle thefts have been reported throughout Oxford, including two incidents where thieves stole bicycles from Walmart by riding them out the store’s front door.

A string of bicycle thefts have been reported throughout Oxford, including two incidents where thieves stole bicycles from Walmart by riding them out the store’s front door.

The asset protection employee at the Oxford Walmart store called police twice in the same hour Aug. 9 to report separate thefts of bicycles.

The employee told the officer in the first report a man had entered the store at approximately 4 p.m. July 13 and went directly to the bicycle rack, selected one and rode it out the front door without paying for it.

The suspect was described as a white male wearing a black hoodie, dark shorts, brown hat and black shoes. He reportedly stole a dark-colored man’s Schwinn mountain bike valued at $249. The officer was provided with a copy of the surveillance video of the theft.

MORE: Troopers seize meth, guns in Butler County

The second report involved two suspects working together on the theft of a bike and the officer was given a copy of that video as well.

In that incident a man in an orange shirt, dark-colored visor, white shoes and black shorts walked around the bike rack area. He was accompanied by another man with facial hair wearing a white T-shirt, brown hat and dark pants.

The video shows them walking around the rack and the man in the white T-shirt actually riding the bike around a bit. They eventually move to the front of the store, where the man in the orange shirt walks out of the store, timing his exit so the other man can ride the bike through the door at a “decent speed.” The two then leave the area together.

The bicycle is described as a dark-colored Schwinn men’s bike valued at $149. According to the report, it appears the man in the orange shirt is the same suspect as involved in the prior incident, based on a dark tattoo on his lower right leg that is visible in both videos.

Those were not the only bicycle thefts reported to police that week. A few days before those two reports were made, a Walmart employee told police his unsecured bike had been stolen from in front of the store by a customer leaving the store. Police also took a report from a resident who reported the theft of a bike in the 300 block of South Main Street.

About the Author