Officers seize 11 illegal bikes in ASB crackdown in Bilston

Our officers have been teaming up with some of our specialist units for a crackdown on off-road bikes in Wolverhampton with the teams seizing 11 illegal bikes in their latest operation.

Harnessing support from our off-road and road harm prevention teams and air-support from NPAS, local officers from the Bilston and East Park teams were out pro-actively targeting people causing problems around anti-social behaviour using off road bikes.

The operation on Friday (12 Jun) had a real impact.  Results included:

• One person arrested for dangerous driving and theft
• Two Surrons seized - one being ridden by a 13-year-old
• Two suspected stolen bikes recovered
• Three illegally modified e-bikes stopped and recovered
• A motocross-style bike seized on public open land, in the possession of 13-year-olds
• Two riders detained over driving offences, including no insurance
• A total of 11 illegal bikes removed from our streets

One of the people we stopped, a 29-year-old man, has since been charged with dangerous driving and failing to stop for officers. He has been released on police bail to appear at Dudley Magistrates Court on July 14.

Others stopped by officers on Friday will be dealt with at a later stage, following further enquiries and evidence-gathering.

Heading up Wolverhampton’s dedicated operation targeting off-road bikes, OpDriftcloud, is Bilston and East Park Sergeant Lindsey Ward. She said: “This operation has seen some great results, but it isn’t a one-off.

"We will keep running operations like this until those who are causing issues for the local community get the message, that they'll not get away with making people’s lives a misery and causing harm.

“We know how much this means to the people of Weddell Wynd, Bilston, and the whole of our city and we will continue to use all the resources we have at our disposal to go after those committing crime and anti-social behaviour.”

Our work, alongside partners including Wolverhampton City Council, goes on. We have teams out on regular patrols with targeted operations being carried out based on information we receive from you, the public, about where and when this kind of behaviour happens.

There is advice and information about reporting off-road bikes and anti-social behaviour on our website here

If you see something suspicious in your area, get in touch with us by calling 101 or contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 to stay anonymous.