Man’s stolen round-the-world bike recovered

A MAN has been reunited with his motorcycle after it was stolen during his round-the-world trip.

Martin Williams, who lives in Australia, had already travelled over 16,000 miles through Asia and Europe when he stopped to visit Welsh relatives in Swansea, where he grew up.

When the 53 year old woke up last Wednesday, he found his Kawasaki KLR650 had been stolen from their drive.

Williams said: "In all my travels I haven't had any bad experiences until now - everyone has been brilliant and so hospitable.

"I couldn't believe my eyes. I found a cut chain and my luggage thrown on the ground with no sign of the bike."

He said: "I grew up in Swansea and spent 20 years here so was really excited about coming back to visit."

Martin’s trip had seen him through South Korea, Russia, Mongolia, the Baltic States, Scandinavia, Germany, France and Spain before reaching Britain for Christmas.

He said: "It is a proper travel bike built for tough roads. I had modified it in order to be able to travel round the world.

"I have had it for about seven or eight years and done a lot of travelling on it.

"I was supposed to be heading to Morocco and Africa today but now my plans are all up in the air.

"I was planning to travel for six months, return to Australia and then travel some more but now I have no idea what to do.

"It is awful news and now all I am hoping for is my bike to be returned to me.

"If whoever stole my bike sees this story I just want them to park it up and [get in touch]."

Williams told ITV News on Tuesday that his Kawasaki was found dumped at the weekend with some damage, but he plans to continue the rest of his journey later this week once he repairs it.