Edinburgh Harley-Davidson dealer offers to replace stolen bike

Uschy and Lady Tink on the ferry to the UK

The Evening News reported this week how a sneaky thief was caught on camera nicking Uschy Schneeclaus’ treasured Triumph from outside her Haymarket hotel.

Now Harley-Davidson’s Sighthill boss Kirk Hale has donated a replacement bike Uschy for her tour of Scotland.

Kirk Hale said: “We’re always up for helping fellow bikers. It’s not a great situation in Edinburgh right now with bikes getting lifted.

“We helped out someone last week who’d been through a similar type of thing.

“Because we lease bikes as well, we end up filling the gap for people after they get their bikes taken.”

Journalist Uschy had only arrived in the city hours before her pride and joy was taken from the Edinburgh Lodge car park on Saturday night.

Ushcy, on a four-week tour of Scotland with husband Roman, is hoping Evening News readers can help track down her ride, nicknamed Lady Tink.

“It was our first night in Edinburgh,” said Uschy, 58, from Hamburg, Germany. “We went out into the city and came back about 10.30pm and I gave her a little touch and said goodnight.

“We went to our hotel room and the next morning we came out and my husband said ‘where’s Tink?’”

Footage captured on CCTV shows the moment the dark-clad thief in a white helmet tiptoes into the car park before riding off in the early hours.

Staff at the Edinburgh Lodge took a frantic Uschy to the police station so that she could report the theft of her distinctive lime green Triumph Street Triple.

“The only thing we saw of Edinburgh was police stations, from the inside,” said Uschy.

Gutted at the loss of Tink, Uschy and Roman have had to continue their grand tour on the back of Roman’s bike - but not before having to send luggage back home.

“I’ve had Tink from new for ten years,” said Uschy. “I even decorated her for our wedding five years ago.

“Lady Tink is my best friend since 2009 when I got cancer for the second time, I bought her before my cancer-operation and thought, ‘if I survive - I see her again. If no s**t happens.’

“I saw her again and she stayed with me all the time. So I'm very sad that such an a****le stole my bike. I want her back.”

The couple have since bumped into fellow bikers who have been targeted themselves while passing through the Capital.

“The Police told me that there’s a task force for motorbikes stolen from tourists,” said Uschy.

“In the last days we met three guys from the ferry and they got also three motorbikes stolen - which makes four.

“So, this is selfservice for the thieves, only walking along the hotels and looking. Every day new victims are coming from the ferry.

“What a shame for the city of Edinburgh. People come for holidays and go home with bad feelings.”

Evening News readers helped find German biker Jorg Lorenz’s BMW after it was stolen from outside a Newington guesthouse last month.

Now Uschy hopes for a similar outcome to find Lady Tink, specially lowered and with a Union Jack on the right-hand side of the windshield.

A Police Scotland spokesman said: "At around 4.15am on Sunday 2nd June a German registered Triumph motorcycle, which is lime green in colour, was stolen from an address in Hampton Terrace, Edinburgh.

"This theft is being investigated as part of Operation Soteria and anyone with information is asked to contact police immediately, quoting incident number 2260 2nd June 2019."