A dad visiting an Edinburgh campsite says his £3,000 e-bike was stolen by 'balaclava youths'.
Alistair Harrison was visiting Mortonhall Caravan and Camping Park with his seven-year-old daughter on Thursday, February 17, when he woke up to find his high value bike stolen and bike rack damaged.
Originally from Cupar, Fife, Alistair cut the two-day trip short due to the incident. Police Scotland has confirmed enquiries into the incident are ongoing.
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Speaking to Edinburgh Live about the disappointing incident, the 39-year-old health and safety consultant said: "With the schools being off, we booked the Thursday night and were planning on staying the Friday night too.
"It was actually Thursday night that there were high winds, so we were prepared for a bit of noise and shaking within the motorhome. When we got there, the bike was was secured and chained up on the back and so was my daughter's.
"When I woke up on Friday, I noticed that the bike was gone and the evidence suggests that they used commercial cutters to break the chains as the bike rack was damaged too. After speaking to the reception, they said that two youths had been seen cycling off with what could have been my bike - but the footage was too blurry to be 100 percent certain.
"Interestingly enough, an hour or two beforehand, a group of youths wearing balaclavas had been chased from the site and got onto a bus heading back into town. I think it could well be linked.
"With social media these days, I've actually found out that the bike was on the Gumtree marketplace over the weekend so I've made the police aware but have not heard anything yet."
Alistair continued: "There was a sign that said make your bikes secure which obviously I adhered to but it didn't make any difference. We both felt very vulnerable as well as the thought of people coming into the site at night is quite scary.
"We've actually been to the site once before and there were no issues, that's why we went back. The bike that was stolen cost around £3,000 so it is of a high value. I spoke with the manager at the park who does seem sincerely apologetic."
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We received a report of the theft of an e-bike from Mortonhall Caravan Park, Edinburgh, around 9.55am on Friday, 17 February, 2023. Enquiries are ongoing.”
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