Lincoln bicycle theft rise warning
A police crackdown has so far failed to stop a surge in bicycle thefts in Lincoln, officers have said.
Since August, 69 such thefts have been reported with hot spots in Upper High Street, The Maze and St Catherine's.
Police said extra patrols and the use of decoy bikes had lead to three arrests - but incidents were continuing.
Owners have been told to secure and mark their bikes and shops urged to be careful when buying used machines.
Sgt Paula Gowler said: "We have made arrests and a number of bikes are recovered on a regular basis, but we often find we cannot return them to their owners due to poor descriptions of them when they are reported stolen.
"Victims very often haven't noted down the serial number and very often they haven't been security marked."