Northumbria Police Seize Five Electric Bikes in as Many Days

Five riders aboard off-road electric motorcycles have been riding illegally in an anti-social manner in northeastern England, but Northumbria Police has managed to seize all five bikes in as many days.

The electric motorcycles were seized as part of the continued efforts of Operation Capio which is a law enforcement initiative aimed at disrupting and preventing anti-social motorcycle use.

It focuses on identifying prolific nuisance riders and seizing their vehicles, while the riders that caused the nuisance in the Silksworth area in Sunderland have been reported for a series of offences.

Northumbria Police reported the seizure of five battery-powered machines across a five-day stretch in March.

In the local police force’s latest attempts to catch the offenders, the unit partnered up with Sunderland City Council to respond to reports made of two-wheel disorder.

As well as the seizure of the five electric bikes, the response resulted in two warnings being handed out for anti-social riding, along with a further two individuals being reported for offences including careless driving and having no licence or insurance.

Four of the five riders were issued with Acceptable Behaviour Agreements to restrain them from bad behaviour in the future, while other information has also been gathered about other riders and vehicles potentially causing harm in the same community.

Inspector Ash Hopper, of Northumbria Police, said: “It’s brilliant to see these latest results from over the weekend, under the banner of Operation Capio.

“Our dedicated taskforce for South Tyneside and Sunderland was out in full force, alongside neighbourhood officers and partners to disrupt the offenders who are causing misery for residents. Thanks to their collaborative efforts, we were able to seize five electric motorcycles and report a string of people linked to anti-social riding.

“Our message is really landing with the public who are keen to report disorder to us and support our overall mission to drive down this type of offending. While these results are clearly welcomed, please know that our work is far from over – and anti-social riders can expect to be reported, with their vehicles seized and crushed.”

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