0:00:02 > 0:00:03Thieves will steal our cars,
0:00:03 > 0:00:04our valuables,
0:00:04 > 0:00:08just about anything they can get their hands on.
0:00:08 > 0:00:10To cut down on crime and antisocial behaviour,
0:00:10 > 0:00:15the police and other agencies are using new tactics and technology
0:00:15 > 0:00:18so the bad guys get caught in the act.
0:00:18 > 0:00:20CCTV is gold dust.
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Great evidence for the police.
0:00:22 > 0:00:23You've got to have them stopped.
0:00:23 > 0:00:27Local councils, shops and businesses are laying some traps of their own.
0:00:27 > 0:00:29The eureka moment when you get that evidence.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31And the general public too
0:00:31 > 0:00:33can help unsuspecting crooks get their comeuppance.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35People won't stand by.
0:00:35 > 0:00:37I couldn't sit back and do nothing.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39Yes! We've got her!
0:00:39 > 0:00:43So, anyone who is up to no good had better think twice.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46They might just get caught red-handed.
0:00:49 > 0:00:54Today, the curious case of the burglar on a bike.
0:00:54 > 0:00:58Minutes after committing his crimes, he simply vanishes like a ghost.
0:00:58 > 0:01:02He was disappearing very quickly, almost as if into thin air.
0:01:02 > 0:01:04Now you see him, now you don't,
0:01:04 > 0:01:08but how did this escape artist keep slipping through the net?
0:01:08 > 0:01:12Also today, putting a spoke in the wheel of bike crime.
0:01:12 > 0:01:16Police devise a hi-tech trap to track down the thieves,
0:01:16 > 0:01:18and it seems to work.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21One man takes the bait within just half-an-hour.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23We're all thinking, "That's fantastic! How quickly is that?"
0:01:23 > 0:01:25The adrenaline starts running.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27You think, "Right, we need to get there."
0:01:28 > 0:01:32And not just smash and grab, but crash and grab.
0:01:32 > 0:01:34Two reckless ram-raiders
0:01:34 > 0:01:37go on a destructive after-hours shopping spree,
0:01:37 > 0:01:39but they find themselves in a tight corner.
0:01:47 > 0:01:48Tadworth, Surrey.
0:01:48 > 0:01:53A motorcyclist pulls up outside a house as if he owns the place,
0:01:53 > 0:01:56but he doesn't live here and he doesn't have a key.
0:01:56 > 0:01:59He intends to simply smash his way in.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03He's a prolific burglar who has escaped from prison
0:02:03 > 0:02:05and is on the run.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08But he is like the Invisible Man.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10It was a puzzling and frustrating picture.
0:02:10 > 0:02:14He breaks into people's homes and steals valuable jewellery.
0:02:14 > 0:02:16I lost my grandmother's jewellery.
0:02:16 > 0:02:19It's like losing part of your own history.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22The hunt is on for this slippery customer,
0:02:22 > 0:02:26who appears to disappear straight after committing a crime.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34Surrey is one of the most affluent areas in the UK,
0:02:34 > 0:02:37so it's attractive to burglars.
0:02:37 > 0:02:42DI Richard Haycock has been policing the area for nearly 20 years.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44We deal with a range of crimes
0:02:44 > 0:02:48and a significant portion of those crimes are burglaries to houses.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Because the travel routes are so easy - the roads, the rail -
0:02:51 > 0:02:53it's easy to come into Surrey, commit crime
0:02:53 > 0:02:55and then get out very quickly.
0:02:55 > 0:02:58And, recently, it became clear to the police
0:02:58 > 0:03:02they had a new, unwelcome visitor to their patch.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05We started to get reports of burglaries to houses
0:03:05 > 0:03:09and what we noticed was a very similar method
0:03:09 > 0:03:11of committing these burglaries.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16And it's not long before Richard gets to see some CCTV evidence
0:03:16 > 0:03:19of exactly how this criminal operates.
0:03:20 > 0:03:22It's a Friday lunchtime in July.
0:03:23 > 0:03:27A man on a motorcycle pulls up at a house in Tadworth.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29He parks the bike and rings the doorbell
0:03:29 > 0:03:31to see if anyone is at home.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35No-one answers.
0:03:35 > 0:03:36Believing the house is empty,
0:03:36 > 0:03:39he walks down the side looking for a way in.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45Then, back to the front door, he tries to kick it open.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50But it doesn't budge, so he grabs a rock.
0:03:53 > 0:03:57He throws it at the window, but it doesn't break.
0:03:58 > 0:04:00Now he seems to lose interest
0:04:00 > 0:04:02and starts to wheel his bike back to the road.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05But the homeowner is at home after all
0:04:05 > 0:04:09and, after being woken by the noise, shouts at the man,
0:04:09 > 0:04:13but this doesn't seem to bother the burglar, who just rides away.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16The house owner calls the police.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20who arrive within minutes and flood the local area hunting for the bike.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23But, mysteriously, neither the man nor his motorbike
0:04:23 > 0:04:25are anywhere to be seen.
0:04:26 > 0:04:30The person responsible was seemingly disappearing very quickly,
0:04:30 > 0:04:31almost as if into thin air.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34It was a puzzling and frustrating picture.
0:04:35 > 0:04:39One of the mysterious burglar's early victims in Tadworth
0:04:39 > 0:04:40was Angela.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43She and her partner have made their home in the village
0:04:43 > 0:04:45in a house that is Angela's pride and joy.
0:04:46 > 0:04:50At the time, Angela had been looking after her mother-in-law's jewellery.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55My mother-in-law had been ill in hospital for quite some time.
0:04:55 > 0:04:59Her hands started swelling up.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03We took her jewellery off and she gave it to me and said,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05"I want you to have this."
0:05:05 > 0:05:09I brought it home and put it in a drawer in a kitchen
0:05:09 > 0:05:13where we were keeping anything of any importance to her.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16On returning from a hospital visit,
0:05:16 > 0:05:18Angela is shocked as she walks into her home.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22Just, literally stopped in horror.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26Everything had just been thrown all over the place.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29You just freeze and then the fear hits you
0:05:29 > 0:05:33that whoever has done this could still be in the house.
0:05:33 > 0:05:38But, in fact, the burglar has left and Angela immediately dials 999.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42When the police arrive, Angela checks the kitchen drawer.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45Her mother-in-law's rings are gone.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48And the thought that she had just given me the rings,
0:05:48 > 0:05:50it was just horrible.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53Then we walked around the house
0:05:53 > 0:05:59and saw that the bedrooms had all been turned upside down.
0:05:59 > 0:06:01There are other items of jewellery missing
0:06:01 > 0:06:03which, for Angela, are irreplaceable.
0:06:04 > 0:06:10I lost christening bracelets, 21st birthday presents,
0:06:10 > 0:06:12my grandmother's jewellery.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15It's like losing part of your own history.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18It was to be especially heartbreaking because,
0:06:18 > 0:06:22shortly after the burglary, Angela's mother-in-law health deteriorated.
0:06:22 > 0:06:29The biggest impact I think on me was losing my mother-in-law's jewellery,
0:06:29 > 0:06:31purely because she died so soon afterwards.
0:06:33 > 0:06:35That was the worst part.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39Richard is determined to catch this callous crook
0:06:39 > 0:06:41before he strikes again.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44It's one of those crimes that the police take personally.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47They have been into someone's house, they have violated their privacy.
0:06:47 > 0:06:48A heinous crime.
0:06:48 > 0:06:52So we are really fired-up around making sure that justice is served.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55And he gets an immediate lead.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58The police forensic team find a discarded cigarette end
0:06:58 > 0:07:00in Andrea's front garden.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03Cigarette butts are great for recovering DNA,
0:07:03 > 0:07:05so that cigarette butt was taken.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07It was submitted for examination
0:07:07 > 0:07:10and DNA was found from the cigarette butt,
0:07:10 > 0:07:13which then starts to put our criminal at the crime scene.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17The DNA results unmask the man as Adam Yaroo,
0:07:17 > 0:07:20a convict on the run who has recently absconded
0:07:20 > 0:07:22from Sudbury Prison, near Derby.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26What became apparent was the trail of crime.
0:07:26 > 0:07:30From the absconding from prison, we had offences in Derbyshire,
0:07:30 > 0:07:32Oxfordshire, Kent, Sussex,
0:07:32 > 0:07:34down to really his stamping ground, South London,
0:07:34 > 0:07:36and his offending area in Surrey.
0:07:36 > 0:07:40And the burglar's motorcycle is not his only means of transport.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43It's part of an elaborate story he uses
0:07:43 > 0:07:46if he meets a homeowner in the middle of a break-in.
0:07:46 > 0:07:50That story was he had been involved in or was a witness to an accident
0:07:50 > 0:07:53that occurred the day before involving a motorbike
0:07:53 > 0:07:55and he was looking for witnesses.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57So, they know how he operates and who he is,
0:07:57 > 0:08:01but Richard and his team now need to find the escaped prisoner.
0:08:01 > 0:08:05Now you are on a manhunt and at that point everything gears up.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09Richard's team pulls together every piece of information
0:08:09 > 0:08:11they can find about their suspect.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14We start to build a profile around that person
0:08:14 > 0:08:18in terms of family, associates, locations they are likely to be in,
0:08:18 > 0:08:21so you really try and get inside the mind of the criminal
0:08:21 > 0:08:24and try and think, "If I was them, where would I be?"
0:08:24 > 0:08:28And then, the burglar appeared at another address in Surrey.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31Here we see him arrive at this premises.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34You can see the patterns are played out time and time again.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38With his cover story ready, Yaroo rings the doorbell.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41No-one is home and he commits another burglary.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45The stuff is in the rucksack.
0:08:45 > 0:08:46Away he goes.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50And, once again, he seems to simply vanish from the Surrey roads.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52Police are frustrated.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56The burglar must have a way of hiding himself and the bike.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59It feels like you're in a chess game,
0:08:59 > 0:09:01but with very high and very real stakes.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05And, at some point, you want to make the checkmate move
0:09:05 > 0:09:07that brings the person into custody.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10And that's just what Richard does.
0:09:10 > 0:09:13They get a breakthrough when they cross-reference information
0:09:13 > 0:09:15about the burglar's known associates.
0:09:15 > 0:09:18That led us to an address in Clapham,
0:09:18 > 0:09:22which we put under observations,
0:09:22 > 0:09:24which led to the break in the case.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27Early one morning, we see this guy come out of the house
0:09:27 > 0:09:29and he is arrested.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31And it soon becomes clear just how Yaroo
0:09:31 > 0:09:34has managed to disappear into thin air after a crime.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Police believe he has a van.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40He was travelling to the areas he was committing crimes in in the van
0:09:40 > 0:09:42with the motorcycle in the back.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46He was unloading the motorcycle, doing the burglaries for the day,
0:09:46 > 0:09:49then quickly putting the bike back in the van and staying in the van.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52A load of police activity would go on around him
0:09:52 > 0:09:54and when it had all died down he would drive away.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57But it's the end of the road for Adam Yaroo.
0:10:00 > 0:10:03In court, he pleads guilty to four counts of burglary
0:10:03 > 0:10:05and two of attempted burglary,
0:10:05 > 0:10:09with a further 36 offences to be taken into consideration.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13He is sentenced to five years behind bars.
0:10:15 > 0:10:17When you get that sort of result,
0:10:17 > 0:10:20the amount of time and effort and sleepless nights
0:10:20 > 0:10:26and sweat and machinations that you put into it is all worth it.
0:10:26 > 0:10:30It was nice to know that justice was done and he was caught.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33I think the police have done a fantastic job.
0:10:33 > 0:10:36Angela never got her precious jewellery back,
0:10:36 > 0:10:39but she was determined to create some new memories
0:10:39 > 0:10:41that could never be stolen.
0:10:41 > 0:10:47Not having anything to pass on now to the children and grandchildren
0:10:47 > 0:10:49really is a horrible thing,
0:10:49 > 0:10:52so when we got the jewellery paid for,
0:10:52 > 0:10:55my whole family went to Sri Lanka on holiday with it.
0:10:55 > 0:11:00So, in a way, they got their inheritance in that way.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08Now, people sometimes say they are going to "hit the shops".
0:11:08 > 0:11:11But not like this!
0:11:16 > 0:11:18It's nearly 6.30 on a Monday morning
0:11:18 > 0:11:19when two men in a stolen car
0:11:19 > 0:11:22smash through the doors of a shopping centre.
0:11:24 > 0:11:26The driver avoids a children's toy ride,
0:11:26 > 0:11:30but then sets off crashing into everything else in sight.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Now, it may look like he's performing
0:11:32 > 0:11:34the world's worst three-point turn,
0:11:34 > 0:11:37but there's method in this madness.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40He is ramming through the shutters of this jewellery store
0:11:40 > 0:11:44and, once inside, the pair embark on a smash-and-grab raid.
0:11:45 > 0:11:47After a minute's looting, they get back in the car
0:11:47 > 0:11:51and, with difficulty, drive off back the way they came.
0:11:52 > 0:11:57Less than 24 hours later, in another shopping centre and another car,
0:11:57 > 0:12:01one of the same men is out with a new partner in crime.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04And they are looking to get more goods knocked down off the shelf
0:12:04 > 0:12:06in the same destructive way.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10But their greed and reckless demolition catches up with them,
0:12:10 > 0:12:14leaving an unexpected item in the bagging area.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17Police find DNA at the scene of the raids
0:12:17 > 0:12:19and charge a 20-year-old and an 18-year-old
0:12:19 > 0:12:22with a shopping list of offences.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25So, instead of smashing through security bars,
0:12:25 > 0:12:28they are now likely to be looking through them.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Coming up, a city office.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39This man looks like an executive arriving for work,
0:12:39 > 0:12:40but his business is thieving.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44Thanks very much. I've got two laptops in my bag.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46He is waved through security
0:12:46 > 0:12:49and, unbelievably, even helps himself to a coffee
0:12:49 > 0:12:51before helping himself to more valuables.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57Cycling in Britain is booming
0:12:57 > 0:13:00and bikes these days are worth an awful lot more
0:13:00 > 0:13:03than the rusty old Chopper I used to have.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06But, sadly, that makes them a popular attraction for thieves.
0:13:11 > 0:13:17Derby, in the East Midlands, has had a problem with bike theft.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21A lucrative business for crooks stealing bikes
0:13:21 > 0:13:23worth from £50 to thousands.
0:13:23 > 0:13:28We've had nearly £750,000 worth of bikes stolen in the force last year.
0:13:28 > 0:13:30And it's not just the money.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32The thefts are causing disruption
0:13:32 > 0:13:35in the lives of several victims every day.
0:13:35 > 0:13:37At the time it was my only mode of transport,
0:13:37 > 0:13:38so, when it was gone,
0:13:38 > 0:13:41trips to college went from 10 minutes to an hour-and-a-half walk.
0:13:41 > 0:13:45So the police decide to put the brakes on this crime spree
0:13:45 > 0:13:49and set up a special sting operation to catch the thieves.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57Derby is home to one of the UK's newest velodromes
0:13:57 > 0:14:00and the city is gaining a growing number of cyclists.
0:14:00 > 0:14:02But where there are more bikes...
0:14:04 > 0:14:07..there are also more bike thieves.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10Sergeant Mark Preston heads up a unit in the constabulary
0:14:10 > 0:14:12tackling bike crime.
0:14:12 > 0:14:14I've been a police officer for 20 years
0:14:14 > 0:14:16and I've got an interest in bikes and bike theft.
0:14:16 > 0:14:18I like cycling myself.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21Across the UK, a bike is stolen every 84 seconds.
0:14:21 > 0:14:26In Derbyshire, police have noticed a steep rise in cases
0:14:26 > 0:14:28all over the county.
0:14:28 > 0:14:30It was becoming three or four cycle thefts in a day.
0:14:30 > 0:14:35We have had nearly £750,000 worth of bikes stolen in the force last year.
0:14:35 > 0:14:39Thieves steal the bikes to sell them on. It's big business.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41Some of the people stealing these bikes
0:14:41 > 0:14:44are putting them on online auction sites very quickly.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46You can have something sold within half-an-hour.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49People are travelling all over the country to come and buy these bikes.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52These thefts can cause real problems for victims
0:14:52 > 0:14:55like 17-year-old engineering student Jack,
0:14:55 > 0:14:58who relies on his dad's bike to get to and from college.
0:14:59 > 0:15:02The bike was important to me because, although it was not mine,
0:15:02 > 0:15:05it was my father's, it was my only mode of transport.
0:15:05 > 0:15:07Without it, I couldn't really go anywhere.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11But one Friday, Jack falls victim to the bike thieves.
0:15:12 > 0:15:15On this morning, he rides to college in Derby city centre
0:15:15 > 0:15:17where he locks the bike to a stand.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19There were loads of people,
0:15:19 > 0:15:22so no-one is going to take it with all these people around.
0:15:22 > 0:15:25Believing the bike safe, he heads into his course.
0:15:25 > 0:15:28At 3:30 we finished and we came out
0:15:28 > 0:15:31and I went to where I remembered locking up my bike
0:15:31 > 0:15:33and it wasn't there.
0:15:33 > 0:15:34I just start panicking.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38Jack searches frantically for his dad's bike.
0:15:38 > 0:15:40I was a feeling of anger and just frustration.
0:15:40 > 0:15:42But it's all to no avail.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45Jack and his dad never see the bike again.
0:15:48 > 0:15:50Because of the growing number of victims like Jack,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54Mark and his unit at Derbyshire Police plan an organised campaign
0:15:54 > 0:15:58aimed at stopping the thieves having an easy ride.
0:15:58 > 0:16:00We needed to look at how we can resolve this,
0:16:00 > 0:16:01how we can target offenders,
0:16:01 > 0:16:05how we can encourage people to think about crime prevention.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08First, Mark wants to send out a strong message
0:16:08 > 0:16:10to shock the area's bike thieves.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14And the best way to start is to catch someone red-handed,
0:16:14 > 0:16:16so he plants a special capture bike.
0:16:16 > 0:16:20It looked like just a normal bike that's parked in the right location.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23But the bike's secretly rigged with surveillance technology.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25We put the camera looking at the bike.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28Also, there's equipment within the bike
0:16:28 > 0:16:30that allows us to track the bike and where it goes to.
0:16:30 > 0:16:32On a cold December morning,
0:16:32 > 0:16:35Mark leaves the capture bike locked up in the city centre
0:16:35 > 0:16:38at a known hotspot for bike theft.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40He then waits to see what happens.
0:16:40 > 0:16:41If the bike moves,
0:16:41 > 0:16:45the hidden equipment will immediately send a message to Mark.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47And he doesn't have to wait long.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49Less than half an hour later...
0:16:49 > 0:16:50We had the activation.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53We're all thinking, "That is fantastic. How quickly is that?"
0:16:53 > 0:16:55A man walks past.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58He has a good look at Mark's bike, he walks on.
0:16:58 > 0:17:02But then he comes back for a second look.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05He must think, "That looks like a nice set of wheels",
0:17:05 > 0:17:08because, a minute later, he is back a third time
0:17:08 > 0:17:10and heads straight for the bike.
0:17:10 > 0:17:15He wrenches the bike free from the lock, jumps on and cycles away.
0:17:15 > 0:17:20For once, Mark is pleased that a bike's been stolen.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23Proud of ourselves for doing it, but we now need to recover the bike.
0:17:23 > 0:17:25It's the excitement, the adrenaline starts running
0:17:25 > 0:17:27and you think, "Right we need to get there."
0:17:27 > 0:17:30Thanks to the technology hidden in the bike,
0:17:30 > 0:17:32Mark and his team track it to an address.
0:17:32 > 0:17:34Knocked on the door, the door was answered.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37Completely denied any knowledge of what it was all about
0:17:37 > 0:17:39and what we were there for.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41As we were searching, the bike was in a cupboard.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44We arrested the offender and it was happy days for us.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46The man is given a Community Order
0:17:46 > 0:17:51and Mark hopes that word will spread around to all Derby's bike thieves.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54He's got friends that are probably doing the same offences.
0:17:54 > 0:17:57He's telling them, "Watch out, watch out, the police are about."
0:17:57 > 0:18:01And to reinforce the message, Mark advertises the police operation
0:18:01 > 0:18:04with a selection of eye-catching, colourful bikes.
0:18:04 > 0:18:07It gets people talking about it, gets it on social media,
0:18:07 > 0:18:10saying Derbyshire police have capture bikes in operation
0:18:10 > 0:18:13and that sort of cascades all the way through.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16In the coming months, the level of bike thefts go down.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19Mark's message appears to be getting through.
0:18:19 > 0:18:23But there is one thief in particular who seems a bit slow on the uptake.
0:18:23 > 0:18:28CCTV footage of a bicycle being stolen arrives on Mark's desk
0:18:28 > 0:18:30and he spots a familiar face.
0:18:31 > 0:18:35It's this same man who stole the capture bike.
0:18:35 > 0:18:37We know instantly who that offender is.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40There he is down at the lock, fiddling about with it,
0:18:40 > 0:18:41and he's cut the lock.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Within five seconds he has taken £500 worth of property.
0:18:45 > 0:18:49The man is arrested and this time he is going behind bars.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56In court, he pleads guilty to 17 various offences,
0:18:56 > 0:18:57including bike theft.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00He is sentenced to 48 weeks in prison.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05Mark's high-profile bike theft campaign
0:19:05 > 0:19:09goes on to have a remarkable impact on Derby's crime statistics.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12We see a 50% reduction in bike thefts in the city
0:19:12 > 0:19:14and also the surrounding areas.
0:19:14 > 0:19:16For me, and for the team that was involved in it,
0:19:16 > 0:19:18we have achieved something here.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21Mark's campaign has been a huge success,
0:19:21 > 0:19:24but, unfortunately, it can't bring back the bike
0:19:24 > 0:19:27that had been stolen from engineering student Jack,
0:19:27 > 0:19:29But Jack mounted a campaign of his own
0:19:29 > 0:19:32to find out if anyone had seen who had taken it.
0:19:32 > 0:19:36And asking around the nearby shops, he struck lucky.
0:19:36 > 0:19:38A customer had filmed it on their phone.
0:19:38 > 0:19:42It's a short clip, but it shows three people around Jack's bike
0:19:42 > 0:19:46just before it was stolen, snipping the security chain.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48It was obvious what the three people were doing.
0:19:48 > 0:19:50You could clearly make out the faces,
0:19:50 > 0:19:53so I thought if I put it online, hopefully, they would be recognised.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56Jack posts the video on the internet and soon gets replies
0:19:56 > 0:19:59suggesting the name of one of the thieves.
0:19:59 > 0:20:03He passes the information to the police.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06When I got the call saying that there had been an arrest
0:20:06 > 0:20:10and a prosecution I was quite happy because something had been done.
0:20:10 > 0:20:11Justice had been done.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18Police officers like Mark do the best they can
0:20:18 > 0:20:22to track down the thieves and return stolen bikes.
0:20:22 > 0:20:23But there are things we can do
0:20:23 > 0:20:27to try to stop our bikes being stolen in the first place.
0:20:27 > 0:20:28If it's at all possible,
0:20:28 > 0:20:32try and leave your bike in somewhere that's covered by CCTV,
0:20:32 > 0:20:35or that's perhaps well-lit and a really busy area
0:20:35 > 0:20:37that people are constantly passing by.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40The best thing you can do is secure it with a lock,
0:20:40 > 0:20:42but two locks is always better than one.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44Especially when the locks are different
0:20:44 > 0:20:47because they may have to bring two different types of tools
0:20:47 > 0:20:48to break the locks.
0:20:48 > 0:20:50There are examples where we've found up to 35 bikes
0:20:50 > 0:20:53and we've struggled to get them back to their owners
0:20:53 > 0:20:55because there's no unique identification for them.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58Personalise and security mark your bike,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01so that if it is stolen and the police do recover it
0:21:01 > 0:21:04we can identify that and get back to you.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11Thieves rarely look like baddies from movies.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14Sometimes they just blend in and look like
0:21:14 > 0:21:16just another face in the crowd.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24The City of London.
0:21:24 > 0:21:26As an important financial hub,
0:21:26 > 0:21:28the Square Mile's high-rise office blocks
0:21:28 > 0:21:32are filled with valuable hi-tech equipment containing sensitive data.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35This man is not bothered about data, though.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37He's just after the equipment.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41He sneaks into offices to steal expensive laptops.
0:21:41 > 0:21:45He was so brazen and acted with extreme confidence.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47He blends into the office buildings,
0:21:47 > 0:21:50wearing a suit and looking just like any other worker.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53He takes laptops to sell for cash,
0:21:53 > 0:21:55but even though he has no interest in what is on them,
0:21:55 > 0:21:59for the victims, the information that is lost can be crucial.
0:21:59 > 0:22:03If anything happens to any of our data, it affects the whole business.
0:22:03 > 0:22:05He strikes time and time again,
0:22:05 > 0:22:08going in and out of many different buildings.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11Just extremely frustrating. He was being really elusive.
0:22:11 > 0:22:13He needs to be stopped.
0:22:18 > 0:22:22Over 300,000 people commute into the City of London every day.
0:22:24 > 0:22:25Raj is one of them.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28He works for an IT company.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30It's up to me, as an IT manager,
0:22:30 > 0:22:33to ensure that all the IT works and ticks as it's supposed to.
0:22:33 > 0:22:38But one Thursday evening, Raj comes across a different kind of gremlin
0:22:38 > 0:22:41from the sort he normally comes across in computers.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43It is just after 6.00pm.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47Raj and a colleague return to their office after a works do
0:22:47 > 0:22:50and come face-to-face with a man they haven't met before.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53Me and my colleague are fairly new to the company
0:22:53 > 0:22:55and I'm not familiar with every single face.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57So I walked in, said "Hi" to him
0:22:57 > 0:22:59and he acknowledged that we were here.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02It did not look suspicious at all.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05They assume the man works for the company and leave him to it.
0:23:05 > 0:23:07We come out of the server room and he was gone.
0:23:09 > 0:23:11The next day, Raj is shocked to discover
0:23:11 > 0:23:13two important laptops are missing and,
0:23:13 > 0:23:16after a check on the building's CCTV,
0:23:16 > 0:23:19he realises he had seen the thief.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23I thought, "Oh, my God, he was literally within hand's reach."
0:23:24 > 0:23:26I'd just literally walked past him
0:23:26 > 0:23:30and did not suspect anything until the following day.
0:23:30 > 0:23:34Thankfully, all the data is password-protected and encrypted,
0:23:34 > 0:23:38but, even so, losing the laptops is a worry.
0:23:38 > 0:23:41If the thief, whoever he sold it to, can unlock it,
0:23:41 > 0:23:44then it could be a massive impact to the organisation.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47The laptop theft is reported to the City of London Police,
0:23:47 > 0:23:50where it joins a pile of similar reports
0:23:50 > 0:23:53on the desk of Detective Sergeant Richard Peacock.
0:23:54 > 0:23:57There's as been a spike in this type of crime.
0:23:57 > 0:24:01Richard and his team suspect that it is the work of just one thief,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04but, so far, he has evaded capture.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08Richard is frustrated when he sees this latest report.
0:24:08 > 0:24:11Your heart sinks, really, because now another crime is committed
0:24:11 > 0:24:14and you're wondering how many more there are going to be
0:24:14 > 0:24:15before we apprehend him.
0:24:15 > 0:24:18But several weeks of intense investigation
0:24:18 > 0:24:20has revealed some clues.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22This is CCTV footage
0:24:22 > 0:24:26of the man's first attempted office burglary in the City.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31It's March, early evening, and a security camera shows him entering,
0:24:31 > 0:24:34looking like a businessman deep in conversation on the phone.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38He thinks that if he shows that he belongs there,
0:24:38 > 0:24:40then no-one is going to question him.
0:24:40 > 0:24:45He flashes a pass at security and heads upstairs in a lift.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48The CCTV camera shows he spends half-an-hour
0:24:48 > 0:24:51wandering around the building looking for something to steal,
0:24:51 > 0:24:54but this time he leaves empty-handed.
0:24:54 > 0:24:58He walks around the corner to another office block.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02The reception cameras there show how, when one of their employees
0:25:02 > 0:25:06lets himself out of the locked main door, the thief nips smartly in.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11He waited for the door to be opened by that member of staff.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14The thief pretends to be on the phone again
0:25:14 > 0:25:16and walks through to the office areas.
0:25:16 > 0:25:19When at one point he is challenged by a member of staff,
0:25:19 > 0:25:21he is ready with an answer.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23She said, "What you doing?",
0:25:23 > 0:25:25and he said, "Well, I'm here to do an audit."
0:25:25 > 0:25:29He went about his business counting up the work stations
0:25:29 > 0:25:31and all the electrical hardware and helped himself to a few.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33The light-fingered laptop thief
0:25:33 > 0:25:37gets away with four more stolen machines in his backpack,
0:25:37 > 0:25:41but the next day when Richard goes in to investigate, he gets a lead.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44This time, the thief has made a mistake.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47He may have left behind some DNA evidence.
0:25:48 > 0:25:50He was walking around with a clipboard.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53On the clipboard, the witness had told us were some papers,
0:25:53 > 0:25:56but he stupidly forgot to take those with him.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58The paperwork is sent for forensic analysis.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01Richard also has the CCTV images.
0:26:01 > 0:26:05We produced a couple of close-up stills from this
0:26:05 > 0:26:07and circulated them.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11Some officers think they recognise him and put forward a name.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14Darren Harriot.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18The DNA results back from the lab confirm it is him.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21We had a number of addresses for the suspect.
0:26:21 > 0:26:23But all their leads turn out to be dead ends.
0:26:23 > 0:26:25Harriot is in hiding.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29They continue their hunt, but the next time they see him
0:26:29 > 0:26:33is a few weeks later on CCTV after another crime.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37He walks straight past the front desk and waves at the staff.
0:26:37 > 0:26:41He was so brazen and acted with extreme confidence.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44He even helps himself to a hot drink.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48He appears to have obtained a coffee from the premises.
0:26:48 > 0:26:50And he waves on his way out too.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54Thanks very much, I've got two laptops in my bag.
0:26:56 > 0:27:01Over several weeks, Harriot strikes again and again,
0:27:01 > 0:27:02managing to evade capture.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06It's extremely frustrating that you know who is doing it,
0:27:06 > 0:27:09but you can't actually get hold of them.
0:27:09 > 0:27:13Patrols are increased in the early evening period around offices
0:27:13 > 0:27:16and we're doing everything we can with all our contacts
0:27:16 > 0:27:17to find out where he is.
0:27:17 > 0:27:21The team check out every lead they can find, no matter how small.
0:27:21 > 0:27:26We came upon a tiny, tiny snippet of information.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29I just wanted to get it bottomed-out straight away.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32This small scrap of intelligence points to an address
0:27:32 > 0:27:34where Harriot could be hiding out.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36I went round to the address.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39Much to my surprise, he opened the door.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42And, finally, after all of their hard work,
0:27:42 > 0:27:45police arrest the elusive Darren Harriot.
0:27:45 > 0:27:49His business suit and mobile phone just seized,
0:27:49 > 0:27:53Richard compiles all the evidence for the court case.
0:27:56 > 0:27:58Harriot is found guilty
0:27:58 > 0:28:01and sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison.
0:28:03 > 0:28:07I'm really, really pleased that he has finally been put behind bars.
0:28:11 > 0:28:12That's it for today.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15Join us next time when police and the public
0:28:15 > 0:28:17catch more criminals red-handed.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35Subtitles by Ericsson