Did This Guy Steal Your Bike?

The local bike blogs are abuzz with news of the arrest of James Clayton, a 41-year-old Austinite whom police are holding responsible for a string of expensive bicycle thefts over the last two years.

Acting on a search warrant earlier this week, APD conducted a search of Clayton's house and storage unit, uncovering roughly $60k worth of bikes and parts. Clayton had allegedly been running a "chop shop" from home for some time, stealing bikes from his friends and selling the parts on the internet. It is believed to have been his primary source of income.

What's more, it appears that this may not have been the first time that Clayton engaged in—or was, at least, accused of—such wanton thievery: his rap sheet stretches back to the 90s, and includes assorted burglary theft charges in California and Arizona.

Authorities reclaimed some 20 intact bikes during the search, only one of which has been returned to its rightful owner. If you had your bike stolen from your home in the past two years, you might want to give Detective Scott Askew a call at 512-974-5978.