NCJ Number
137174
Journal
Campus Law Enforcement Journal Volume: 22 Issue: 1 Dated: (January-February 1992) Pages: 37-40
Date Published
1992
Length
4 pages
Annotation
Because of the high value of bicycles, it is not unusual for a large college or university to experience the theft of 6 to 12 per week, with yearly losses in excess of $50,000.
Abstract
With a 50-percent increase in stolen bicycles in 1989 at Boston University, it became apparent that the university had to rethink its strategies and find a better way to deal with the problem. Although no common factor was found in the criminal profile of bicycle thieves, it was determined that the bicycles of choice were mountain bikes with an average value of $300. It was also found that over 70 percent of these bikes had been secured with U-shaped Kryptonite locks. The method of attack was always the same; a heavy pipe was placed over the end that housed the lock mechanism and was used as a lever to snap the lock. University officials worked with the Kryptonite lock manufacturer to modify bicycle locks and passed out bicycle literature to students. The bicycle protection program at Harvard University involves registering every bicycle on campus, operating an identification system for each bicycle, educating the community on how to use a U-shaped lock, reviewing locations for bicycle racks, distributing sleeves for U-shaped locks, and crime analysis and deployment of manpower. An intensive information campaign at Tufts University and an effort to register all bicycles have been successful in reducing the number of bicycle thefts. Tufts security personnel also cultivate confidential informants and use sting tactics to buy back stolen bicycles. Bicycle registration and identification and a bicycle compound are measures implemented at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to prevent bicycle thefts.