Bob
14th May 2005, 00:22
The owner of a vintage motorcycle turned detective after a £2,000 engine was stolen… only to find it on sale on Ebay.
Mark Stevens was devastated when the 30-year-old Ducati 350 motorcycle engine was taken, but resolved to track it down. Mr Stevens put up notices in motorbike shops throughout the area with a picture of his engine.
He received a call from the owner of Mike's Bikes in Salford who told him that one of his regular customers had seen the engine on e-Bay, the auction website. Mr Stevens found out the seller's address and told police who recovered the engine.
Mr Stevens said "I don't have that much confidence in the police doing things for ordinary people, so I decided to find it myself. I believe in positive action. It's no use sitting down feeling sorry for yourself."
Mr Stevens added "It was pretty daft to sell it on e-Bay, but most petty criminals are a bit stupid. I've had things stolen before and usually got them back. I never give up."
Mark Stevens was devastated when the 30-year-old Ducati 350 motorcycle engine was taken, but resolved to track it down. Mr Stevens put up notices in motorbike shops throughout the area with a picture of his engine.
He received a call from the owner of Mike's Bikes in Salford who told him that one of his regular customers had seen the engine on e-Bay, the auction website. Mr Stevens found out the seller's address and told police who recovered the engine.
Mr Stevens said "I don't have that much confidence in the police doing things for ordinary people, so I decided to find it myself. I believe in positive action. It's no use sitting down feeling sorry for yourself."
Mr Stevens added "It was pretty daft to sell it on e-Bay, but most petty criminals are a bit stupid. I've had things stolen before and usually got them back. I never give up."