Armed robber caught on camera stealing $11,000 Pinarello Dogma

A US cycle shop has caught on video (see below) the moment a thief pulled a gun and made off with an $11,000 Pinarello Dogma, in an attack that local police say looks to be the work of professional criminals.

It’s unlikely that armed robbery would figure on the list of ways to getting your hands on that seemingly unobtainable bike, but that’s what happened at a bike shop in Issaquah, Washington when a thief made off with a Pinarello Dogma after threatening a member of staff at gunpoint.

The bike – the same model as used by Team Sky, of course – had been placed by the store’s front door to help entice customers in, although presumably not the type who ended up taking it.

Joking apart, according to the Seattle PI, the theft appears to have been carried out by organised criminals who had scoped the shop out the day before the theft, when two men, who were said to have spoken with Eastern European accents, were captured by surveillance cameras checking out the bike.

The following day, one returned to the shop and began fiddling with the bike, but as the shop owner explained, one of them at least did not seem to have the best bike mechanic skills: "He's actually trying to put two right-handed pedals on, which is why he's having difficulty."

A shop assistant approached the man to see if he needed help, at which point, after first asking the price, the thief pushed him out of the way, pulled out a gun, and disappeared with the bike.

Afterwards, the member of staff said: “He was kind of like, I'm taking this, showed me the gun, and (said), 'If you don't want to get hurt, let me go.'"

Given the Dogma’s rarity, the bike shop owner said: “We don't think it's going to be re-sold locally - it's a very unique bike." He added that the day before the bike was stolen, the thief and another man had cased the shop. “They were going over to the racks, pulling out mountain bikes, seeing how easy they are to pull out of the racks."

According to the store’s staff, men with Eastern European accents had called the store several times in the days leading up to the theft to ask for information. “This is an organised effort," the owner added. "There were multiple people involved, and they knew what they were doing, and they knew what they were after. And we are concerned about that."

The bike shop owner did not want the identity of his store or the cost of the bike revealed, although the word on the internet is that the store in question is Veloce Velo in downtown Issaquah, while the bike lists for around $11,000 in the US.