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The picturesque parks and serene streets of North London have turned into a site of harrowing encounters. The surge of violent bike thefts has left the community unsettled and in a dire state of shock. 

There have been three reports of violent muggings raising concerns about the safety of the club members. Let us delve into this article to learn in detail about theft incidents.

Mugging and bike thefts continue to perturb the cycling community

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The very first attack took place in West London where the suspect used an unidentified object, believed to be a barbed wire and threw it at the rider leading to a devastating crash. As a result of this mishap, the victim had to be hospitalized considering the severity of the injury.  

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The co-founder of the Regent Park Roulers cycling club, Damien Lui enlightened the readers through his interview with Cycling Weekly, “The first time it happened, it wasn’t broadcasted. This was quite a violent attack. Our rider was riding about 7 am, I think in West London, Bayswater, and something was thrown in front of them.”

 

The disturbing trend continued when on the second occasion a member of the cycling club was pushed off his S-Works Venge bike forcefully by the assailants. The incident took place on Archway Road on one early morning before the muggers fled away on mopeds taking away the valuable bicycles. From their Instagram account, Regent Park Roulers cycling club has raised concerns. 

Lack of police intervention to instill safety within the cycling community

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With time, the situation deteriorated as on a recent occasion two young members of the cycling club were aggressively approached on A1000 by two individuals placing the demand to dismount their bikes. The two members faced menacing threats from assailants that have raised concerns catering the incident with urgent and strict measures. 

However, the assistance from the police has not been satisfactory. In a recent event involving the theft of two bikes including one Bianchi Oltre XR4, police surrendered within two ways stating their incompetence to carry out further investigations.

The poor security structure includes only one percent of the bikes that are being charged or cautioned against incidents of robbery. Based on the descriptions noted by the police for three different incidents highlight the fact that all the incidents might not have been a part of the unified plan.  

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The urgency of the situation demands a comprehensive and coordinated effort from the end of the police authorities. Regent’s Park Roulers raising multiple alarms suggests the weak safety rules underlying the prevalent issue of bicycle security that exposes the community to grave risks. 

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