Countryside riders targeted by bike thieves amid record lows in police detection rates

The Telegraph reports that cyclists taking rides into the countryside are being mugged for their high-end bikes by crime gangs exploiting historic lows in police detection rates

Cycling UK, one of the biggest charities, said there was increasing evidence of criminals targeting cyclists travelling out of London to Kent and the Surrey Hills and who may have unwittingly given away their plans on Strava, the app used by riders to map routes and times.

Duncan Dollimore, head of campaigns at Cycling UK, said the phenomenon was “on the radar” of the three police forces - the Met, Kent and Surrey - after a series of incidents where cyclists have been attacked for their bikes.

In June, Jennifer George, a two-time Scottish road race champion, revealed how she had been attacked twice by men on motorbikes while riding alone near Oxted in Surrey.

It followed multiple reports of a moped gang seemingly targeting lone female cyclists after a rider was held down and had their bike stolen during an attack near Warlingham in Surrey in April.

Cycling UK believes many of the bikes stolen have been targeted by gangs because of the profits to be made by selling them on second-hand sites such as Gumtree and eBay.

It is alarmed, however, by the latest trend to mount bike muggings on cyclists.

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