A cyclist traced his stolen bike himself after police said they were too busy to investigate.
Marc Cutler, 35, found his £500 bike for sale at £250 on the Gumtree website after it was stolen from Columbia Road Flower Market in Shoreditch. With two friends he confronted the man trying to sell it after posing as a buyer and arranging to meet him at Bounds Green Tube station.
The seller refused to surrender the bike even though Mr Cutler had the receipt for it. Mr Cutler grabbed the bike and refused to let go — but said he had to wait 80 minutes until police turned up and threatened to arrest the seller for handling stolen goods.
Mr Cutler, a PR executive from Islington, said: “It amazes me that the only way to get something back is by doing everything myself and putting myself and my friends in potential harm’s way.”
He reported the crime by phone at first but after being told he might wait 72 hours to hear from a police officer, he began searching auction websites.
Next evening he spotted it and phoned police, but was told it would take several days for officers to respond. He says a CID officer at Bethnal Green later told him police didn’t have the resources to help.
Mr Cutler added: “The CID officer called to congratulate me on getting my bike back. He said, ‘I’m sorry there was nothing we could do, but I’m happy for you’.”
