French man devastated after motorbike stolen while on holiday trip through Leeds on way to Scotland
A French national has spoke of his despair after his motorbike was stolen within hours of passing through Leeds.
Sebastien, 55, was preparing to set off on his three-week trip around Scotland with his partner when he stopped off at Halford’s in Kirkstall on June 7. When he left the store his motorbike had gone and his plans were ruined.
There has been a spike in the number of motorbike thefts in Leeds in recent weeks, with victims highlighting that the bikes are then being “paraded” on social media by gangs of youths stealing them.
West Yorkshire Police said it is aware of the concerns and the fact that the motorbikes are being displayed online.
Sebastien, who lives to the north of Paris, had rode his BMW R100GS to Rotterdam before getting the ferry to Hull and driving to Leeds, where he was scheduled to meet his partner and drive up to Scotland.
He said: “I stopped at the shop because I had a problem with my GPS gear. I came out and my motorbike wasn’t there.
“When I came back to the shop they said ‘you are not the first one’.
“I couldn’t believe it. I was feeling really confident driving in Leeds. Everything was so peaceful.”
He said that it was his first big trip on the bike, which he had bought three years prior and spent thousands of pounds kitting out.
He said: “It’s not so easy to find a bike like this in the shop so I will probably struggle to get another one.”
After it was stolen Sebastien contacted his friend in Darlington who then shared a message on a Facebook group asking for information. Around 45 minutes later someone got in touch to say that they had seen the bike advertised on Instagram.
“The community response and the amount it had spread so quickly was really impressive”, he said.
Sebastien, like others whose bikes were stolen, said that he shared this information with police but they said they were unable to make an arrest due to a lack of evidence.
He said: “It’s very disappointing the fact that nobody seems able to do anything.”
The items attached to the back of the bike were found nearby after they were left strewn by the side of a path.
Sebastien and his partner had to abandon their trip to Scotland and instead went to London and returned to France on the Eurostar.
He said: “We are really, really upset because we had three weeks of riding around Scotland planned. We were so happy to do it.
“We are getting older so if you want to make such a trip it’s getting harder and harder.”
Sebastien said that on Friday he received a call from West Yorkshire Police saying that they were looking into the matter further. He has also approached the French Consulate for further support.
A West Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “Police received a report at 2:54pm on June 7 that a motorbike had been stolen which was parked at Abbey Retail Park, Kirkstall.
“A number of items that were in bike boxes on the motorbike were subsequently found and returned to their owner. At this time, the stolen motorbike has not been recovered.”
In a previous statement released on Friday they said: “We recognise there are concerns in Leeds District regarding motorbike-related crime and are aware of instances where stolen motorbikes have been advertised for sale on social media.
“Enquiries are ongoing to identify those responsible and we will take positive action where people are found to be in possession of, or using a stolen motor vehicle.
“We also work closely with our partner agencies to tackle vehicle theft and would ask anyone who believes they have information about a stolen motor vehicle to report it by calling 101, or using our livechat facility on the West Yorkshire Police website.
“Information can also be reported anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.”