A Belfast woman has spoken of her devastation after her bike was stolen in the city centre on Monday.
Rachel Berry, who moved to New Zealand 20 years ago, was back home in Northern Ireland to visit her dad. A keen cyclist, Rachel spent time and money making modifications to her bike, and over the summer used it to travel across Europe.
Speaking to Belfast Live today, Rachel explained that within 15 minutes, her bike had been taken from the front of a shop in town.
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"I would have came back on a more regular basis, but this time it was a bit longer because of Covid, but I was glad to get home," she added.
"I organised to have a longer time off work this year so that I could visit family and do some travelling. I've always ridden a bike as a form of transport but I have become more avid in the last six years or so.
"Yesterday, I was going into Jackson's Sports to get some stuff for another trip and locked the bike up on the No Entry sign on Skipper Street next door. When I came out of the shop, no more than 15 minutes later, it was gone.
"It really was like a kick to the chest, it was awful. I called police on 101 straight away and also went across to a shop across the road and it is on their CCTV but you can't identify anyone because they had baseball caps on.
"To me, it is much more than just a bike, and to those who have taken it, I don't think they realise what this means to me."
Police say they received a report of the theft of Rachel's bike from the High Street area at around 12pm on Monday, November 7.
Sergeant Donnelly said: "The bike, which was reported as having been taken from the street outside retail premises, is described as a specialised Chisel hardtail mountain bike, silver / grey in colour, with orange writing and 'swept back' handlebars with orange tape.
"Enquiries are ongoing and we would appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time and saw anything, or who may have dashcam, CCTV or other video footage, to contact 101 quoting reference 720 of 7/11/22.
"I would also urge anyone who is offered a bike matching this description for sale in suspicious circumstances to get in touch. Alternatively, you can submit a report online using the non-emergency reporting form via http://www.psni.police.uk/makeareport/.
"You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at http://crimestoppers-uk.org/."
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