Yesterday I subjected you, dear readers, to a story about a bike shop break-in and my ruminations about how the COVID-19 epidemic has turned bicycles into scarce and valuable commodities.
Well, today, I'm going to introduce you to a bike thief who seemed not to be motivated by the current bike boom and shortage.
In Mesquite, Nevada--just over the state line from Utah--police responded to a bicycle theft at the Virgin River Casino. (Am I the only one who thinks "virgin" and "casino" look odd together?) Not long afterward, at a nearby gas station, someone jumped into a car that had been left running and drove it away.
According to Mesquite Police Sergeant Wyatt Oliver, people often leave cars running so that it won't get too hot inside. The key (pun intended) is to lock it before leaving, he explained. It seems that most people remember to do that, so Officer Oliver says, such a theft "doesn't happen very often."
The thief did something else that "doesn't happen very often." When vehicles are stolen in the area, thieves normally make a beeline for the nearby freeway. Our anti-hero drove to another casino where employees reported someone "acting suspiciously." Mesquite police officers then showed up and arrested Danielle Derosia of Henderson, Colorado.
So what motivated her? My guess is that both thefts were "crimes of opportunity." Finding an unattended car with its engine running after she'd just stolen a bike may have led her to believe that she had luck on her side and she decided to try that luck in the casino. And, though she had the impulse to steal, she wasn't thinking like a seasoned thief, who would run as far and fast as possible from the scene of the crime.
Whatever her motivations or level of "street smarts," she stole a bike. That won't win her many fans on this blog!
Well, today, I'm going to introduce you to a bike thief who seemed not to be motivated by the current bike boom and shortage.
In Mesquite, Nevada--just over the state line from Utah--police responded to a bicycle theft at the Virgin River Casino. (Am I the only one who thinks "virgin" and "casino" look odd together?) Not long afterward, at a nearby gas station, someone jumped into a car that had been left running and drove it away.
According to Mesquite Police Sergeant Wyatt Oliver, people often leave cars running so that it won't get too hot inside. The key (pun intended) is to lock it before leaving, he explained. It seems that most people remember to do that, so Officer Oliver says, such a theft "doesn't happen very often."
The thief did something else that "doesn't happen very often." When vehicles are stolen in the area, thieves normally make a beeline for the nearby freeway. Our anti-hero drove to another casino where employees reported someone "acting suspiciously." Mesquite police officers then showed up and arrested Danielle Derosia of Henderson, Colorado.
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| Danielle Derosia |
So what motivated her? My guess is that both thefts were "crimes of opportunity." Finding an unattended car with its engine running after she'd just stolen a bike may have led her to believe that she had luck on her side and she decided to try that luck in the casino. And, though she had the impulse to steal, she wasn't thinking like a seasoned thief, who would run as far and fast as possible from the scene of the crime.
Whatever her motivations or level of "street smarts," she stole a bike. That won't win her many fans on this blog!
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