Thieves cause costly damage to steal dirt bike from Waggrakine home, Facebook group helps recover bike

A Waggrakine man is glad to have been reunited with his dirt bike after it was allegedly stolen by young thieves in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The owner of the bike received a call from his neighbour at 4.30am saying he had heard something in the backyard and went out to inspect it but found nothing. A few minutes later he heard the thieves attempting to start the bike then riding off. The neighbour started his car and followed the thieves around the corner before they got away on the KTM 450, which the owner says is worth about $6000. The owner posted a photo into the Geraldton Noticeboard stating the bike had gone missing, and any information would be appreciated. At the same time, a post to the group read “just seen two individuals on a KTM 450 on Box Street heading to Spalding, both with balaclavas on”. The post garnered 105 comments and 109 shares, including pictures of the bike-riding near St George’s Church, CCTV footage from a bottle shop drive-through and other tip-offs from the community. It resulted in a sighting and notification to police. The dirt bike was returned to the owner on Wednesday morning with a few scratches. “I’m just happy to have it back, and it’s not burnt out,” the Waggrakine resident said. The man said the thieves retrieved the bike by using a steel bar to prise open the garage door, then bending the metal. A pair of bolt cutters that were left in the garage were used to cut the bike free and then slid out underneath the bent door. The owner was quoted $2800 to fix his garage door, as well as $1200 for the remote and motor for the door.