Man to be sentenced after admitting taking motorbike without consent
It took police a number of weeks to track the bike down
A man to be sentenced after admitting taking a motorcycle without consent - and riding it without insurance.
The blue and black Yamaha MTO3 has been taken from Cabot Circus and was found by police about a month later in Southmead - on August 23.
The bike has since been returned to its owner.
Police then carried out an investigation, which found evidence of the bike being driven to Glencoyne Square which helped officers identify the rider as 20-year-old Harvey Mitchell.
Mitchell, of Hawkins Crescent, Bradley Stoke, appeared at Bristol Magistrates' Court on Thursday 14 September, after being arrested and charged on Wednesday 13 September.
He is due for sentence at the same court on Thursday 26 October and was released on court bail until that hearing.
Avon and Somerset Police say they have set up a specific operation to tackle a recent troubling rise in motorcycle theft and associated anti-social motorbike use.
Officers are targeting hotspots and offenders with a range of tactics including drone unit and the National Police Air Service helicopter.
If you see someone acting suspiciously around motorbikes, or riding them in a way which poses a danger to others and themselves, please call 999 immediately. We’ll attend whenever we can, and such calls have already led to arrests and the recovery of stolen machines. If we can't attend due to other incidents, we’ll use the information to help us target our patrols.
If you have information about those responsible for the thefts, any footage of offenders riding anti-socially, or know where motorcycles or parts are being stored or sold, please call 101 or report through the police website.
Alternatively contact the independent charity Crimestoppers 100 per cent anonymously by calling 0800 555 111, or online.