Published at 11:29, Monday, 14 May 2012

Cumbria police have come up with an effective way to catch bicycle thieves.

Undercover officers in Carlisle have been placing their own mountain bike in theft-hit areas to see if anybody steals it. Ten suspects have been arrested.

This tactic has been used before for different crimes.

Last summer police in west Cumbria loaded a skip with scrap and placed it in theft-plagued areas to trap metal thieves. It is a criminal offence to remove anything from a skip without the permission of the owner.

Reiver wonders if there is any crime which this principle cannot be applied to.

Do you want to catch burglars? Pack a house with jewellery and gold bars and leave the front door open.

Do you want to catch arsonists? Put a box of matches next to a fireworks factory.

And if you’re trying to find would-be violent criminals?

Chain Simon Cowell to a lamppost and leave a pair of boxing gloves handy.

Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk