Olympian and ex-professional cyclist, Ciaran Power, and his son Hayden are two happy men this evening after a €14,000 bike that was stolen from Ciaran, but is owned by Hayden, was returned to them.
Ciaran, who rode the Giro in his heyday, collected the bike from gardaí at Waterford City station after an investigation resulted in the bike being located, apparently still in mint condition.
Added to that, a suspect for the theft has been charged and is due to appear in courts after the crime was caught on CCTV.
The bike – a Trek Emonda with Sram Red Groupset and Zipp 808 wheels – was stolen from Ciaran's office in Waterford City as he was working last Tuesday.
However, gardaí had CCTV from the premises and now the investigation has resulted in a rare happy outcome as stolen bikes - especially the high end models - are rarely reunited with their owners.
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"Gardaí in Waterford are delighted to report that a stolen bike, reported this week, has been reunited with its owner, Ciarán," Waterford gardaí said in a statement about the case published on social media on Sunday night.
"We would like to thank the public for their help. The Suspect has been charged and court proceedings to follow," the Garda statement added, though no information was shared about the suspect.
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However, given Power's profile as a former top international athlete, when the suspect appears in court charged in relation to the crime the case is likely to generate a signifcant amount for media coverage.
When the bike was stolen, Power told stickybottle the frame was new and he was very keen to be reunited with the bike, and very annoyed it was stolen, especially at how brazen the thieves were.
“I know it was stolen between 1pm and 3pm,” he said. “They had to pass my room to get to the waiting room. It’s actually my son Hayden’s bike, as mine was being serviced.
“He was good enough to give me his so I could keep cycling to work as my oldest has my car to get to work and cycling keeps my head in a good place.”
Power also asked his friends and followers on social media to keep an eye out for the bike.
“This bike was stolen from my office at 19 O’Connell St Waterford today in the afternoon,” he said in a brief social media post in which he also shared an image of the bike.
“It’s a Trek Emonda with Sram Red Groupset and Zipp 808 wheels, size 60. It’s a very distinctive high end bike please keep an eye out and share this post please.
“The thief had the balls to walk into my clinic and grab the bike when I was working in the room next door.”
