Thieves break into Specialized HQ and steal $160,000 worth of bikes, including Peter Sagan’s Paris-Roubaix-winning machine
Police are investigating the theft, while Specialized are offering a huge reward
Thieves have broken into the Specialized headquarters and stolen $160,000 worth of bikes, including a Peter Sagan Monument-winning machine.
The incident happened on Sunday, December 13 when suspects forced entry to the building, located in Morgan Hill, California, in broad daylight and stole a large collection of bikes.
Among the 16 bikes that were stolen, thieves escaped with Sagan’s 2018 S-Works Roubaix (which he used to win Paris-Roubaix that year), Fabian Cancellara’s yellow jersey S-Works Tarmac, and bikes owned by the company’s founder, Mike Synard.
The total value of the bikes stolen comes to around £117,000.
Specialized is offering a reward of $25,000 to anyone offering information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the these, or the return of all the stolen bikes.
Morgan Hill Police Department is also investigating the theft, which happened sometime before 4.36pm on Sunday, and has issued a public appeal.
Suspects are believed to have used two different vehicles during the burglary - CCTV captured a maroon-coloured Toyota 4Runner and a white box van.
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The thieves placed bikes into the white van and then both vehicles fled the scene, while the Toyota was found abandoned later.
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A statement from police said: “Unknown suspects forced entry into the business during the daytime hours and stole multiple high value bicycles. The stolen bicycles were part of a large collection of one of a kind prototypes, race-winning and personally owned bikes Specialized had on display in their building. The total value of stolen property is estimated to be approximately $160,000.00.”
According to Cycling Tips in the US, thieves escaped with Sagan’s Paris-Roubaix-winning bike, his 2019 Tour de France bike, Cancellara’s yellow jersey machine from the 2010 Tour, a Shiv ridden by Tony Martin in the 2012 Olympics, two Stumpjumpers own by the company’s founder, and a full-suspension road prototype, among others.
Anything with information can contact Morgan Hill PD.
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Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers. Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.
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