Bicycle thefts have risen across the University, Champaign and Urbana within the past three years.

As spring approaches, more and more students can be seen outdoors riding their bicycles. With the appearance of more bikes on campus, theft becomes more prevalent, especially when University students are not taking the proper precautions said Officer Tony Ortiz, crime prevention coordinator for the University Police.

“Most of (the bikes) are stolen without force,” said Gary Spear, crime analyst for Champaign police.

This means that a good amount of bike owners are not locking up their bikes, so these people become targets for theft. Ortiz said when he passes by University buildings he often sees bikes unlocked or locked in random areas, such as around trees.

Thefts occur everywhere, but are more prevalent in isolated areas where there are no designated bike racks, Ortiz said. He also said the Illini Union, libraries, gyms and dorms are areas where the number of bicycle thefts is high.

Despite the advantages to having a bike on campus, many University students do not take responsibility for their bicycles and other property, Ortiz said.

“I’m going to tell you how people get their stuff stolen,” Ortiz said. “It’s going to happen during the first two weeks of school because (students) get careless, they have too much on their mind.”

People who are caught stealing bicycles on campus are arrested and it becomes a serious matter, Ortiz said.

However, if someone is caught stealing a bicycle in Champaign, they usually do not receive any jail time, but are required to do community service. Sentencing for bicycle theft can also depend on the value of the property stolen. It is a misdemeanor crime if someone steals a bike valued under $350, but if someone is caught stealing multiple bicycles totaling over $350 then the person gets arrested and investigated, Spear said.

“You’ll find a suspect who has a bicycle that wants a newer bicycle or see one they like and they’ll literally leave their bicycle and take a newer bicycle,” Spear said.

Usually juveniles are the ones caught stealing, Ortiz said.

Ortiz said bicycle theft will decrease as long as students attend the campus safety presentations given throughout the year and make the easy, but necessary efforts to protect their belongings. The mandatory campus safety presentations began in 1996.

“Before we started actually doing some orientations to the majority of students and parents, we were having an average of 200 plus (bike thefts),” Ortiz said.

Sean Kearns, junior in Aviation, said he attended the transfer student campus safety orientation when he first came to the University this school year. Kearns, who owns two bikes, said he took the advice presented at the orientation and uses a T-bar lock and does not leave his bike outside overnight to avoid theft.

Spear said the Champaign police do not host presentations, and it is up to the owner to be cautious. He said he does not foresee a decrease in bicycle theft at the University because there are new students every year and it takes time to educate them about property safety.

If a student decides to use a more expensive bike on campus, Ortiz said he recommends getting insurance and registering with campus parking. But Ortiz said the best way to ensure the safety of a bike is to bring an old bike to school.

Spear said it is better for bike owners to lock up the bike frame, not the wheel because wheels are easier to replace compared to whole bikes.

He also said bike owners should know the serial number, instead of the bike model number, because it is easier to identify stolen bicycles that way.

The University and Champaign Police Departments have auctions about every other year to dispose of unclaimed bicycles.

The city of Urbana, however, does not hold yearly auctions.

“We don’t auction them off, we just donate them to charity,” said Chelsea Angelo, the person responsible for unclaimed bicycles in Urbana.

She said if the bikes have not been claimed after three months, the Urbana police donate them to local charities.

In Urbana, especially during the summer months, kids like to go joyriding, which can damage the bikes faster. As a result, many of the kids can no longer ride them and will leave their bikes in random locations.

“We don’t get a lot of stolen bicycles,” Angelo said. “We get more abandoned bikes.”

In 2005, according to Urbana police, of the 187 recovered bicycles in the city 80 were unsecured.

Kearns said he takes extra care because his roommate’s bike was stolen outside of the Union where it was parked for only fifteen minutes.

“Ever since the incident with my roommate, I’ve been really careful,” Kearns said.