$10K mountain bike stolen from sleeping tourist in Nanaimo, RCMP say

This image shows a man on a mountain bike. (Credit: Shutterstock)

A visitor from Germany who decided to sleep in his vehicle woke up to find his pricey mountain bike had been stolen form his roof rack, according to authorities.

The tourist arrived on Vancouver Island late last month, planning to explore on his $10,000 bicycle, Nanaimo RCMP said in a statement Tuesday.

“Before retiring for the night, he took his wheel off and locked the frame and tire to his roof rack by a cable lock. When he woke, all that was left behind of his bike was a cut cable,” Mounties said, in the statement.

The man reported the theft to police, who found the bike and returned it to its “extremely grateful owner” within hours, police said. However, no suspects have been identified and no arrests have been made.

The detachment said it has seen an uptick in high-end bike thefts over the summer, and is urging cyclists to invest in secure locks that can’t be easily removed with bolt cutters.