As of: February 22, 2024, 7:35 p.m
By: Isabel Winklbauer
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Sebastian Paulus with the charger of his stolen e-bike.
© Gerald Förtsch
The damage caused by stolen bicycles is getting higher and higher.
A thief victim reports how brazenly and systematically the perpetrators are now acting.
Three expensive bikes stolen in one night!
In the Klenzestraße residential complex in Ismaning (Munich district) there was a lot of thieving activity on the night from last Saturday to Sunday.
Resident Sebastian Paulus (40), one of those stolen, is certain: “There is a gang of thieves hanging around here who are after high-priced items.”
Paulus' bike was an e-bike from Focus, which costs around 4,500 euros new.
The two bikes stolen from his neighbors were not e-bikes, as the PR consultant reports, but they were also beautiful pieces worth between 2,000 and 3,000 euros.
Paulus: “They were all locked with a folding lock or thick chain lock and were stolen from the bicycle racks in front of each house.” The thieves must have had large bolt cutters.
Unfortunately, no one saw or heard a delivery truck on the night in question because the windows and doors in the residential complex are soundproof.
Ismaning is generally a worthwhile place for bicycle thieves, says Sebastian Paulus - but that actually applies to the whole of Munich and the surrounding area.
Many high earners live here, and many people park their bikes on the S-Bahn during the day or on the rack in front of the house at night.
With regard to Ismaning, Paulus says: “It would be nice if the police patrolled more often.
But unfortunately you don't see the officers enough." Werner Kraus from the Munich Presidium says: "When it comes to theft, the police like to wear civilian clothes so that they can't be recognized.
Otherwise the thieves would be frightened.” The officers in Ismaning go on patrol regularly, and if there are bottlenecks, their colleagues in Munich are there quickly to help out.
So far, there has been no recent increase in bicycle theft.
Radlbauer offers U-locks, folding locks, chain and spiral locks.
Thieves need a large bolt cutter.
© Klaus Haag
Nevertheless, it's a significant number of cases.
In Munich, around 6,200 bicycles are stolen every year, an average of more than 15 per day.
Over the years and seasons, the values sometimes increase and sometimes decrease, but one thing is consistent: the thieving trend in Munich is clearly towards expensive bicycles.
Since 2013, the annual total damage to bicycles has increased from 3.49 to 5.48 million euros - that's an increase of more than half.
This is certainly also due to the fact that more and more e-bikes are on the road.
And they are significantly more expensive than the pure muscle power version.
Sebastian Paulus is still lucky: his e-bike was leased through his employer as a company bike and was well insured.
He'll get it replaced soon.
Not so his neighbors: They go on foot and hope that the police will find him.