As reported to the school community in a recent email from School Security, multiple bicycle thefts have occurred at both St. George’s campuses in the past few weeks. The incidents that occurred at the Senior School, as we have discovered, resulted because bikes had not been locked properly, or only partially, allowing the thieves to take the unlocked parts of the bikes. According to English teacher Mr. Rick Roberts, the theft at the Senior School involved two bikes, one where only the frame had been locked up, and one where only the front wheel had been locked up. Because of this, the thief was able to take the front wheel from the first bike and attach it to the frame of the second bike and ride off with it.

This event has startled many people who ride their bikes to school, and has caused some of them to stop biking to school all together. Mr. Gino Pagliericci, Head of School Security, stated in his email to the school, “I am reminding you to please secure your bicycles properly to the proper bicycle racks (Locking not only the front wheel or just the body of the bicycle). It is a good idea to also ensure you have your bicycle serial number somewhere where it can be reported to the police”. These are some precautions that bikers can take to ensure their bikes are as safe as possible while stored on school property, as well as other things such as purchasing a lock that is more difficult to cut off.

Some may also wonder why the security camera placed over the bike racks wouldn’t have helped in identifying the thief while or after the event took place, or even why it wouldn’t have noticed the thief enter school grounds when he or she did. We inquired to School Security about this, but we received no response. Some sources told us that the camera had not been working, or had simply been shut off and deemed unnecessary. Whatever the case may be, we feel that the camera would have been a vital piece of equipment to prevent incidents such as this.

We have spoken to some members of the Saints community that bike to school, and why they might do so. Mr. Roberts told us: “for one, I can’t stand driving. The stop and go traffic in the morning drives me mental. But also, it’s a good way to maintain a certain level of fitness. There’s also a Zen to it where I ease into the day”. It’s a shame that a lot of bikers have to go about their everyday routine knowing the risk that their main source of transportation could disappear at a moment’s notice. It’s sad that someone, or some people, could be so insensitive to this fact. We believe more should be done to prevent things like this from ever happening.

However, it is our job as the school community to stay vigilant and to report anything suspicious. If you do believe that you are witnessing something that poses a threat to school security or community members’ property, you can always contact School Security at 604-314-5925.