‘Hey, that’s my bike;’ trooper finds stolen bike while helping driver with flat
May 2, 2013, 10:37 AM | Updated: 12:59 pm
A college student poses with his recently stolen bike, returned by a State Patrol trooper who originally sold it to him, then spotted and recovered it after a random traffic stop. (WSP image)
(WSP image)
When a Washington State Patrol trooper stopped to check on a disabled car in North Seattle recently, something surprising caught his eye. A familiar bicycle. It was the same bicycle the trooper had sold just weeks before; to somebody else.
The driver was stopped on SR 523 near the Jackson Park Golf Course in Seattle. He had a flat tire and was frantically rummaging around in his car as the first trooper pulled up. The trooper spotted a gun inside the disabled car.
A second trooper came along, as often happens, according to WSP spokeswoman Julie Judson. The second trooper immediately noticed the bicycle. “And said, ‘hey, that’s my bike. That’s the bike I just sold,'” she said. Judson said he knew it was his bike because of some distinctive scratches. The trooper also noticed the serial numbers were scratched off.
The trooper eventually was able to telephone the guy who bought his bike several weeks earlier.
“His initial response was: ‘did you steal my bike?'” said Judson. The trooper assured him that his bike had been recovered from a suspected thief and the trooper was able to deliver the stolen bicycle back to the new owner, on Capitol Hill. He said his bike had been stolen shortly after he bought it from the trooper.
The driver, 34, was booked on a felony firearm charge.
