Midlothian crime: Man offers £3,000 reward after motorbikes stolen from home

A man has offered a £3,000 reward after his motorbike was stolen from his home.

Ian Gardiner, 18, was horrified to find that his motorbike had been stolen from his home – again.

Just one year before, he was lucky enough to track two motorbikes that were stolen from him when he lived at a different address.

This time, he has put up a £3,000 reward for anyone who has any information that leads to finding the culprits.

He explained: “Since I’m an apprentice I don’t rely as much on my wages I actually buy and sell cars and motorbikes and have done the past two years just as a hobby in fixing things and then making a profit.

“I have a garage located elsewhere to secure them all, but this motorbike I had at my home as it’s my primary use for transportation.”

Unlike last time, Ian now has CCTV footage of the theft, which took place in the early hours of the morning on Saturday.

He explained: “I had really helpful and nice neighbours assist me in finding the people who took my motorbike by showing me their CCTV, which showed three thieves all in black walking up and taking my motorbike.

Midlothian crime: Man offers £3,000 reward after motorbikes stolen from Newtongrange home

"Firstly observing the bike and the surroundings at 1:05am, and then getting scared after hearing something move and ran away and then coming back six minutes later to steal the bike eventually at 1:12am on the Saturday.”

Ian is devastated at the loss of his bike, as motorbikes have been his passion for years.

"I felt annoyed at the fact people can think they can take stuff and not work for it like I did.

"I worked and saved to get into motorbikes as I’ve always wanted a motorbike since I was young.

Midlothian crime: Man offers £3,000 reward after motorbikes stolen from Newtongrange home

"I eventually passed and bought my first motorbike on my 16th birthday.

"There is a £3000 reward to any information leading to finding the three thieves who took my motorbikes.”

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Officers received report of the theft of a motorbike around 12.55pm on Sunday, 24 April, 2022, which happened between 11pm on Friday, 22 April, and 8am on Saturday, 23 April.

"Enquiries are ongoing.”