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Police arrest suspect over bike theft – twice

In an effort to slow down the cycle of crime in North Vancouver, police recently arrested an alleged bicycle thief twice in a span of 10 days.
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In an effort to slow down the cycle of crime in North Vancouver, police recently arrested an alleged bicycle thief twice in a span of 10 days.

North Vancouver RCMP made the first arrest on May 27 after being alerted to the afternoon theft of two mountain bikes locked up at a home in Deep Cove. Just a few hours after getting the call, officers patrolling the area allegedly spotted Matthew James Hurren, 22, riding a $4,000 stolen bike near Cates Park.

Hurren was arrested on charges of possession of stolen property and theft under $5,000. The second bicycle was not found. Hurren was also ordered not to be found in Deep Cove or to possess any bicycles, according to a statement released by North Vancouver RCMP spokesman Sgt. Peter DeVries.

On June 6, the RCMP’s strike force unit allegedly followed Hurren to Deep Cove and saw him pluck the second stolen bike from some bushes in Myrtle Park.

“The consequences were not sufficient to overwhelm whatever was drawing him to go back there,” DeVries said.

Hurren is now facing a second charge relating to being in possession of a stolen bicycle as well as violations of his initial probation order.

The incident is a reminder of how adept a determined criminal can be in terms of overcoming obstacles, according to DeVries.

“It becomes a bit of a game of putting as many obstacles in a criminal’s way as possible to hopefully make your property look unappealing,” DeVries said, suggesting multiple locks can dissuade a thief looking to use his time efficiently.

While the bikes may need to be fingerprinted and processed as court exhibits, DeVries said the owner should expect their mountain bikes back fairly soon.