Returns Bike to Rightful Owner

One bicycle is stolen every 30 seconds, according to a study published July 2019 in Canada and the United States. The odds of getting your bike backafter it’s been stolen are often slim to none—roughly 5 percent.

One man last week fortunately did get his bike back last week—all thanks to a good Samaritan and a that quickly went viral.

Ste Burke, of Liverpool, U.K., tweeted out on January 20 that he had purchased a mountain bike that was obviously stolen. How did he know? There was still abike lock on it.

Burke had just come home from the gym and was getting his bag out of the trunk of his car when he saw a few men walking down the street, one of whom was carrying the mountain bike. They offered to sell it to him.

He recognized how much the Whyte 901 hardtail was likely worth—he estimated £1,350 (nearly $1,800)—and knew that the owner was probably “heartbroken” over having it stolen. So he agreed to buy it for £80. Then he took to Twitter to try to find the owner.

Despite having just over 2,200 followers, his post was retweeted more than 11,500 times. Not even five hours after posting his original tweet, Burke that he had found the bike’s owner, who lived in nearby Dovecot.

“That’s the power of social media,” Burke told Bicycling. “It can be used for the good sometimes.”

Burke was messaged by someone who recognized the bike and knew the owner, and they gave him the owner’s phone number. When they met up, the bike owner was able to confirm that the bike was his with two important items: the bike’s original paperwork from purchase and the key that matched the bike lock.

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Being reunited with his bike meant a lot, and not only because he had saved up and spent a pretty penny on it—the man’s house had been broken into two days prior, and he had lost far more than the bike.

“When I met up with him, he told me his home was broken into, and they had took valuables, designer clothes, etc.” Burke said. “He was very grateful. He kept hugging me in disbelief that it was back.”

The response to Burke’s tweet was incredibly positive as well. He received countless messages from people applauding his kind deed. Many even offered to pay back the money he had spent to buy the bike, including the bike owner, or to buy him a pint. Burke turned them all down.

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He even heard from Halfords, a bicycle retailer in the U.K., who offered to reward him with a bike of his own.

Instead, he’s asked for people to donate money to Speedo Mick—a frequent charity fundraiser who raises money by performing endurance challenges while wearing his iconic speedo—to pay it forward with a kind deed of their own.

Service and News Editor

When she’s not out riding her mountain bike, Jessica is an editor for Popular Mechanics. She was previously an editor for Bicycling magazine.