Heringsdorf (dpa/mv) - An attentive security guard and camera recordings from an underground car park prevented another e-bike theft in Heringsdorf on the island of Usedom. A police spokesman said on Tuesday, shortly after midnight, the security guard saw three masked men tampering with vehicles on a screen and called the officers. When state and federal police officers arrived, the trio fled. A 39-year-old perpetrator was caught. Electric bikes worth more than 10,000 euros were already waiting in front of the garage for transport.
Because of the many cycling holidaymakers, Usedom has been a stronghold for the theft of high-quality e-bikes in the north-east for years. According to the police, professional gangs from Eastern Europe are often behind this. In May alone, bikes worth more than 50,000 euros disappeared. Last year, e-bikes worth 420,000 euros were stolen on the Baltic Sea island. That corresponded to around a third of the damage caused by all stolen electric bikes in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.
