Terrified cyclists have called on the Met Police to start patrolling parks earlier in the day after swathes of violent robberies have seen them threatened with hammers and sharp objects.
The muggers have been operating in Regent’s Park, London, where more than 30 cycling clubs meet between 5.45am-7am every day before the area opens to cars.
Preying on the groups, the often expensive bikes are being regularly snatched by armed, balaclava-clad men on motorcycles, leaving cyclists petrified to go out in the capital.
And with upcoming planned cuts to the Met Police’s budget, fears have deepened over the potential disbandment of park police altogether, which could see the issue severely worsen.
Currently, officers in the area do not begin patrolling the park until 8am and have said they cannot start any earlier in response to queries from the bikers.
Data analyst, Patrick Conneely, 33, is one of many cyclists who affected by the thugs after they stole his £4,200 bike last month.
‘I was meeting some friends in the park and was a bit early so did a lap by myself,’ he told The Times.
‘A moped pulled up with two men on and one started looking at the brand. I knew I was in trouble so turned around and so did they. They told me to “get off the f***ing bike” and pulled out a hammer.
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The muggers have been operating in Regent’s Park, London, where more than 30 cycling clubs meet between 5.45am-7am every day
Terrified bikers have reached out to the Met Police, who have said they cannot work earlier hours to patrol the park
‘Someone called the police and they were there in about five minutes. They said it was the third or fourth call that morning. Cyclists are really scared.’
MailOnline previously told how clubs around Regent’s Park have seen drop-off in cyclists clocking miles in the area after the recent rise in robberies.
Some believe their bikes are being stolen by criminal gang members before being transported across the world, which comes after the latest reports of the bikes being listed for sale in Russia.
Mum-of-three and keen cyclist Bethan Lloyd-Glass, 52, was on her way to Regent’s Park one morning last month when a thug pushed her off her £8,200 bike, swung it over their shoulder and jumped on a moped before speeding away.
The Pilates instructor was one of three victims of attempted thefts that morning around the park and admitted that the rise in thefts had led to a ‘climate of fear’ in the cycling community.
‘It’s terrible at the moment,’ she previously told MailOnline.
‘There’s definitely a climate of fear in the cycling community.’
Mrs Lloyd-Glass says a lot of female cyclists like her are afraid to go out riding on their own due to violent robberies.
Describing her terrifying ordeal of having her bike stolen, she said: ‘It was very quiet, about 5.30 in the morning.
‘As I was approaching a canal bridge this motorbike came past me. The pillion passenger turned around to look at me, I had stopped a few feet away from them.
‘I kind of knew he was going to get off his bike. I unclipped my foot from the pedal and I think I said something ridiculous like, “Don’t take my bike”.
‘He pushed me off and took the bike. If I had resisted, they would definitely have had weapons – lots of people are threatened with knives.
‘I think I was easy pickings. It was like taking candy from a baby. I was in a bit of a panic.’
Chairman of the Regent’s Park Cyclists group, Sean Epstein, said those with more expensive bikes are targeted during early morning rides around the park.
He said: ‘What is special about Regent’s Park is that it’s shut to cars in the morning. There are main through roads [to the park] in the mornings.
‘Mopeds just stand and wait – two people on a moped of motorbike – plates removed, with masks or balaclavas.
Mum-of-three and keen cyclist Bethan Lloyd-Glass (pictured) was on her way to Regent’s Park one early morning last month when a thug stole her bike
The Pilates instructor previously said the rise in thefts had led to a ‘climate of fear’ in the cycling community
Mrs Lloyd-Glass had her Trek road bike worth £8,200 (pictured) stolen from her near Regent’s Park last month
‘Most robbers kick riders off their bikes while they’re riding and wrestle their bikes off them.
‘Last winter the robberies kept increasing. Our clubs were getting hit on a weekly basis.
‘It’s always the same method and the same response from the police: treating it like stolen property, shrugging and saying, “Sorry, we’ve got no leads.. You should get insurance”.
‘It has led to a general fear and inability for people to feel safe.’
Regent’s Park Cyclists, founded around a decade ago, recently penned an open letter to Sir Mark Rowley, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service, warning him of the ‘chilling’ effect of the ‘weekly’ attacks on cyclists across London.
Sean Epstein, chair of Regent’s Park Cyclists, said those with more expensive bikes are targeted during early morning rides around the park
In his letter, Mr Epstein quoted figures from a Freedom of Information response from the force, which reported that in the year up to December 2023, 768 crimes of a pedal cycle being stolen using violence or the threat of violence were reported – equivalent to ’15 violent attacks each week, every week of the year’.
He added that a poll of members also found that out of 1,400 respondents, 91 per cent felt less safe as a result of a recent surge in violent robberies, with 59 per cent admitting they’d reduced their cycling as a consequence.
However, in a response they received from former Assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe, Mr Epstein was told a national review of cycling theft had found that violent robberies were ‘currently occurring in isolation’ with ‘no particular patterns’ or indications of ‘wider, organised criminality’.
The letter from Ms Rolfe, who has since moved on from her role as Assistant Commissioner, said: ‘I am confident that our renewed commitment to community-focused policing and the strengthening of the teams working in local areas will only enhance this ability and lead to improved results.’
Former assistant Commissioner Louisa Rolfe said a national review of cycling theft had found that violent robberies were ‘currently occurring in isolation’
Mr Epstein, however, said he was dissatisfied with the response.
‘Lots of nice words but no actual resource commitment,’ he said. ‘Over the last year, there has been a massive drop in participation in cycling and people just not feeling safe.
‘Over the summer, when the mornings get lighter, the problem went away. But now the winter is back, the cycle continues and there’s no meaningful response.’
Some cyclists who’ve had their bikes stolen said they have been threatened by thugs with knives, machetes and hammers.’
Some cyclists fed up with police inaction over bike thefts have taken matters into their own hands.
Business partners James Dunn and Richard White founded their company BackPedal, which installs GPS trackers on customers’ bikes and sends recovery officers to reclaim stolen bikes once they’re located, back in 2021.
The pair believe bicycle thieves are encouraged by the lack of convictions and successful prosecutions.
In 2022, almost 90 per cent of bike thefts reported across England went unsolved, according to figures from the House of Commons Library.
And in the five years up to June 2022, just 159 people were found guilty of bike theft out of an estimated 350,000 reported cases.
Many victims also don’t bother reporting their bikes being stolen – due to their lack of faith in the police’s ability to locate and reclaim them.
MailOnline have approached the Metropolitan Police Service for comment.
