Geared up for bike crime

POLICE are preparing for a spike in crime involving bikes as lockdown rules ease and summer arrives.

A crackdown on moped gangs has seen criminals opt for pedal bikes instead, which are easier to manoeuvre on the pavement and down alleyways.

Cycles are difficult to trace so they are being used in street robberies, drug dealing and violent crime.

More than 50 officers across north London will be involved in a joint operation with Transport for

London this week, targeting criminals who use bikes.

DCI Shaun White, from the Metropolitan Police, said: “We’ve tried to get ahead of the curve.

“Offenders know we effectively police individuals who use mopeds so they’ve opted for pedal cycles now.”

In the year to February 9, the Met recorded 2,325 robberies where the suspect was riding a pushbike, up almost 1,000 on the previous year.