Bicycle 'chop shop' in Hamilton encampment busted

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Hamilton Police have busted a bicycle “chop shop” operating out of a homeless encampment.

Cops said Monday they had received reports that “numerous bicycles believed to be stolen” were in the encampment at the intersection of Main and King Sts., commonly known as the Delta.

Officers went to the scene and “determined that the bicycles did not belong to encampment residents.”

While there, police said a citizen told them the steel bike rack had been stolen from a nearby McDonald’s parking lot the night before.

When officers went to the fast-food joint to return the rack they “discovered that CCTV footage captured the theft.”

A suspect was identified and a 50-year-old Hamilton man — whose name was not released — is charged with theft under $5,000 and fail to comply with probation.

Eight bicycles were seized from the encampment but police said some had been painted or dismantled, making identifying the owners difficult.

Police say the best way to ensure a bike can be returned is to register it through the police online bike registry and also advise to use good-quality locking device. 

In Hamilton, about 450 bicycles are stolen every year, and police say only 4% are recovered and 30% of recovered bicycles are returned to their owner.