Big drop in motorcycle thefts in York
It's thanks to a special operation launched in January
Last updated 1st May 2025
A recent operation to tackle motorcycle thefts in York has seen a big reduction of 80 percent.
It's as part of a special police initiative called Operation Ignition that began in January.
It saw crime prevention and security events being held in partnership with York Motorcycle Action Group and local retailers.
The team worked closely with the City of York Council and York Motorcycle Action Group to improve the security of council car parks.
They agreed in principle that as a standard, each car park should have dedicated motorcycle parking bays covered by CCTV, with a ground anchor installed allowing owners to secure their bikes. Crime prevention advice posters are due to be installed at each dedicated parking bay.
They used covert tactics that led to the arrest of a prolific offender through forensic hits, and targeted work against top suspects and offenders. As well as this, regular patrols of hotspot areas between relevant hours using a mixture of plain clothes and hi-vis officers led to a number of stop-searches of top stolen motor vehicle (SMV) suspects.
Offenders' methods were used against them - the team conducted patrols of hotspot areas to look out for motorcycles that are easily visible and that lack security features. Owners were then identified, engaged with and given crime prevention and security advice. Through detailed analysis of thefts, new lines of enquiry and patterns in times/dates of offences were identified.
7\0 disc lock alarms were purchased through Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) funding. A questionnaire was sent out inviting motorcycle owners who reside/work in York to apply for a free disc lock alarm in an effort to prevent an increase in thefts. Locks were prioritised to individuals who live/work in areas of York with high amounts of theft and that don’t have the means to securely store their vehicles.
The team didn't just work alone, they collaborated with Humberside Police as they believed offenders were travelling to and from the Hull area to commit thefts in York.
A day of action in December 2024 saw five arrests as a result of joint work with specialist intelligence into a number of TikTok accounts posting videos of SMVs. None of the arrested suspects have since been linked to motorcycle thefts.
This resulted in:
Over 80% reduction in thefts, January 2025 vs January 2024
Over 60% reduction in thefts, February 2025 vs February 2024
Over 70% reduction in thefts, March 2025 vs March 2024