Prolific London bike thieves jailed
Pair of thieves who stole bikes throughout London sent to prison after 13-month case concludes
A PAIR of thieves from Peckham who stole more than 20 bikes worth over £200,000 from the streets of central London have been jailed following a 13-month investigation.
After pleading guilty at Southwark Crown Court of conspiracy to commit theft, Paul O’Farrell, 23, and 18-year-old Lufti Guney were yesterday given sentences of 15 and 10 months respectively.
O'Farrell’s sentence was reduced by 145 days due to bail conditions imposed at the beginning of criminal proceedings. For the same reason, Guney’s sentence was also reduced by 148 days.
The pair were caught as part of an investigation after the Met Police’s London Crime Squad identified numerous bike thefts across the capital that were being carried out using the same methods.
O’Farrell and Guney would patrol areas including Kensington and Chelsea, the City of London, Southwark and Westminster on stolen mopeds, looking for bikes to steal. They’d have a van nearby containing tools needed to break steering locks and cut through chains and locks. They would then put the bikes in the van before making off. The police believe it’s likely the stolen bikes were broken for parts or shipped abroad.
One of the bikes stolen from a car park in Chelsea in April 2014 was an MV Agusta F4 750 Serie Oro – bike number 15 of 300. It belonged to investment manager Luigi La Ferla, who acquired the bike through his friendship with Claudio Castiglioni.
