A London, Ontario man says although officers put his own stolen bike up for sale online and shared the suspect’s name, phone number and address with London Police, officers didn’t act immediately because of “a massive problem.” with resources and manpower.”
Ahmad Azizov said he bought his $700 Giant Talon bike to get to and from his job as a resident at the London Health Sciences Centre’s Victoria campus. It was stolen from a secure locker at the hospital on August 9 and he reported the theft to police the next day.
Although Azizov is not a detective, he believes the theft was the act of a professional due to the way the bike was stolen.
“I knew it was cut with power tools,” he said of the $150, 7-pound lock that the thief sawed off to get Azizov’s ride. “It was cut through like butter.”
CBC News contacted the hospital about the security of its bike locker, but a spokesman did not return a request for comment before publication.
Man says “I could say it” by subtle cues
Since the theft, Azizov has been keeping an eye on online ads for bikes for sale, and indeed on Friday night a bike that looked remarkably like his was put up for sale on Kijiji by a vendor in London’s Pond Mills area.
A picture of Ahmad Azizov’s Giant Talon bike chained to a steel bike rack in the LHSC’s locked bike enclosure. Azizov said the thief broke into the enclosure and sliced his $150 lock “like butter.” (Provided by Ahmad Azizov)
“I figured this really looks like my bike. I had a scratch on the left side of the bike and that scratch was identical,” he said, adding that the bike looked like a few parts had been removed, like e.g. B. a side stand and lighting.
Ahmad Azizov is a resident at the London Health Sciences Center’s Victoria campus who had his bike stolen in August. A month later, he gave police the name, phone number and address of a suspect based on an online ad selling his stolen bike. The police did not immediately respond to the tip. (Provided by Ahmad Azizov)
“If you put something on a new bike and take it off a few months later, there’s a shiny piece of metal there. I could see that,” he said.
“I had a front fender that broke off. It would be very interesting for someone to just put a fender bracket on.”
Azizov said the alleged thief included his phone number in the post, so he looked it up online using a reverse search directory. The address matched the seller’s phone number and username on Kijiji.
Azizov then found the suspect’s social media accounts and gave him access to the suspect’s pictures and an address.
“While collecting this information, I sent it to the London Police,” Azizov said. “They said they would send someone over in a few days. I tried to explain to them that this person is trying to sell this asap.”
The police did not act immediately and on Sunday the seller informed Azizov that the bike had been sold.
Azizov said his bike was registered with the London Police Cycle Register.
Police won’t say why officers didn’t act, but emails offer clues
CBC News contacted the London Police Service on Monday. Constable Sandasha Bough’s spokeswoman said in an email only that the investigation “is currently ongoing”.
There is a massive resource and manpower problem at the London Police Service.– const. Randi Carey, London Police Service
“We have no additional information to share at this time as this is an active investigation,” she wrote.
While police aren’t speaking officially, emails exchanged between Azizov and the London Police Service offer some unofficial clues as to what police are thinking.
“There are over 120 calls waiting to be processed and this is a lower priority call as nobody’s safety is at risk. Unfortunately, this call will likely take days to be processed,” Const said. Randi Carey wrote in a September 11 email in an exchange with Azizov obtained and verified by CBC News.
“There is a massive resource and manpower problem at the London Police Service.”
Chief Steve Williams received approval in May to add 52 new frontline police officers to his force to handle longer response times. At the time, he explained that there had been an unprecedented demand for services and more complex investigations.
Official declares “chronic” bicycle thefts
In the email exchange, the official wrote that the court system often fails to hold people accountable for their actions.
“Most people are released from detention despite police demands that they remain in detention,” Carey wrote to Azizov.
“Once someone is charged it’s entirely up to the courts how to deal with it/convictions/convictions,” she wrote.
The officer recommended that Azizov and anyone unhappy with the police response time call the city to file a formal complaint.
“They will (hopefully) only make positive changes if they really understand what’s going on and how it’s affecting the taxpayers of this city.”
