Riders stopped in their tracks by £8,000 theft

A BMX bike and skateboard group in Fitton Hill have been forced to slam on the brakes after all their equipment worth over £8,000 was stolen.

The Horizon Riders and Skaters group use 10 BMX bikes, 10 skateboards and 10 pairs of inline skates to learn new tricks at the Horizon skate park, St Martin’s Road, every weekend.

But the freewheeling youngsters were stopped in their tracks after their steel storage container housed on the skate park was broken into and their equipment taken.

Volunteer coach Darren Pemberton (41), from Bankfield Drive, Fitton Hill, said: “It was the children who told me the container was on fire so I went down and saw smoke billowing out of it.

“The two padlocks had been cut, all the bikes, skateboards and skates were gone and a sofa inside the container had been set alight.

“The equipment was supplied to us by the New Deal for the Community (NDC) programme and we’ve stored it in the container for six years with no problems.

“I’m absolutely gutted and have nothing to teach the youngsters with.

“It’s not the theft that really gets to me but letting the children down.”

Part of the haul includes 10 distinctive BMX bikes from the Mongoose range, with five of them bright red Mongoose Rogue style and five purple Mongoose Villain styles.

Mr Pemberton, who works as a caretaker, said police are investigating the matter but he believes the items were stolen to sell on.

He said: “I’ve asked around but no one witnessed anything.

“The children who turned up for the Sunday session were really upset, their faces just dropped when they were told what happened.

“It would be great if the equipment was returned to us.”