Bike thief caught after police sting in Edinburgh
A 28-year-old man has been charged after being caught covered in a special chemical that was coated on a bike which was stolen in Edinburgh.
Since September, thousands of homes have been given SmartWater Technology to help stop housebreakings.
For the past few weeks, Edinburgh officers have been planting a mountain bike which is coated in the solution.
After being stolen from outside the Edinburgh University library on Friday, the bike was traced to Hyvot Gardens.
Using a SmartWater UV lamp the man at an address there was found to be covered in the marking solution and was arrested.
He is due to appear in court at a later date.
Det Ch Insp Stuart Houston said: "Our focus was on crime prevention and the property-marking solution.
"SmartWater signage in numerous streets throughout Edinburgh and across Scotland are proving to be an excellent deterrent against housebreaking."
He said police had been using a marked bike in areas where break-ins and thefts had regularly been reported.
"The public will not know where this bike, or any other marked items will be positioned, nor will they be able to detect the solution on the property," he said.
"What they will very quickly realise though, is that they have been literally caught red-handed when we appear at their door."