One e-bike owner learned the hard way not to leave his two-wheeler unlocked and unattended for even a few minutes. Public safety cameras caught a man peering at the bike in front of a convenience store and casually stealing it. Fortunately for the owner, the thief didn’t get very far before he was caught.
Commenters were not surprised the e-bike was stolen
On August 13, officers responded to a call about an e-bike being stolen near a convenience store (several commenters say it was a 7-Eleven) in the 100 block of Pine Street, according to a post by the Orlando Police Department on its official Facebook page.
The video paired with the post shows the theft from a public safety camera with a direct line of sight of the store’s entrance. The e-bike owner, seen with a bright yellow shirt, rides the vehicle on the sidewalk and turns into the corridor. He gets off the bike and parks it close to the door’s entrance without locking it like the other bikes on the street, perhaps thinking that he was only going to be in the store for a short time.
That’s when the thief struck. Minutes later, a man with a guitar strapped to his back walks down the street and spots the bike unattended. He shuffles toward it slowly before climbing on the seat and quickly darting off.
After a quick investigation, officers identified the suspect as John Frederick Welter, found the e-bike, and returned the vehicle to the owner. The thief was arrested, though the post doesn’t share what Welter has been charged with.
Several commenters on Facebook were not surprised that the bike was stolen. One writes, “I did security at the Exchange and at the parking garages nearby. Huge numbers of homeless in that area when I was working [there]. Biggest error he did was NOT locking it up.”
Another hopes that the e-bike owner isn’t so reckless in the future: “Ok but u do need more street smarts to survive Florida than leave the bike outside available.”
