Police make six arrests following Padgett’s bike theft
Arrests come after four of the stolen bikes are recovered from locations in West Yorkshire
POLICE in West Yorkshire have arrested six men suspected of being involved in the theft of multiple rare and classic bikes from Padgett’s Motorcycles in Batley at the start of January.
On February 29, officer from Kirklees police executed four search warrants at addresses in nearby Tingley, Thorpe, Middleton and Morley. They arrested six men aged 25, 28, 61, 20, 24 and 29.
All have been released on bail pending further enquiries.
The series of arrests comes after two of the stolen bikes were recovered after being abandoned in Tingley near Wakefield and the Belle Isle area south of Leeds, on January 27 and January 30 respectively.
The police also recovered two motocross bikes from an address in Morley, West Yorkshire.
The bikes, some of which were brand new and dated back to the 1950s, are part of the personal collection of Padgett’s Motorcycles founder Peter Padgett.
DC Jim Calpin, from Kirklees CID, said: ‘Through our investigation into the thefts from Padgetts we have been able to recover a number of motorcycles, but our enquiries are still ongoing to obtain the rest of them for the owner. We are pleased that following successful lines of enquiry we have made six arrests over the past week.’
Police are keen to talk with anyone who has any information about the theft or the locations of the of the stolen bikes. Jim Calpin at Kirklees CID can be contacted via 101, quoting reference 13160004253, or anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
