A 23-year-old man was arrested after allegedly stealing a bait bike hours after it was left out by police in Nanaimo.
Beau Randall Jansen, 23, pled guilty in Nanaimo Provincial Court on Dec. 19 and was sentenced to 57 days’ jail after he was recently caught stealing a bait bike at Vancouver Island University, according to a Nanaimo RCMP press release.
Jansen, according to police, stole the bait bike a few hours after it had been placed at the university. He was arrested without incident moments after the theft occurred, RCMP say.
Const. Gary O’Brien, media spokesman for the Nanaimo RCMP, said there had been a rash of bike thefts at the university in recent weeks, adding that Jensen is well-known to police.
“We call him a prolific bike thief. That’s his forte. He’s been targeting VIU for sometime and now we’ve got him nailed,” O’Brien said.
Jensen had faced charges of theft under $5,000, possession of break-in tools, possession of a weapon dangerous to the public, as well as two counts of breaching an existing undertaking.
O’Brien said the RCMP have placed numerous bait bikes throughout the city.
“They’re just like bait cars. They are all over the city and they’re various size, makes and models,” he said.