BICYCLES are being stolen at a rate of about one a day in Weymouth and Portland.

Police have revealed shock figures of the amount of cycle thefts in the borough over the last three months leading officers to suspect an organised gang is at work.

The same individuals are thought to be responsible for at least 41 thefts in the Weymouth town centre and Westham area alone.

Gang members arm themselves with tools so they can cut locks and chains and have been striking regularly during the day in busy public areas.

This has prompted police to advise owners to not only lock their bikes but to leave them in areas covered by CCTV cameras.

For the entire Weymouth and Portland area there have been 90 thefts of bikes recorded since August although this figure includes burglaries when cycles were among the haul stolen from homes.

PC Adam Bayliss of Weymouth Police is investigating some of the town centre thefts and says that thieves are stealing bikes to fund their criminal lifestyle.

He said: “The selection of bikes appears to have been indiscriminate though the thieves generally appear prepared, with locks and chains being cut.

“Bikes of all values have been stolen including high value cycles, and unique ones.

“A lot of the thefts have occurred in the afternoon and in busy public areas.”PC Bayliss added: “Members of the public should be reminded to secure their bicycles in well-lit areas using a good quality lock.

“The town centre does have a large amount of CCTV cameras as do a good proportion of the local shops, and where possible bikes should be secured in view of a camera or in public areas to increase the chance of witnesses.

“The public should remain vigilant to potential bike thieves.”

Community safety spokesman for Weymouth and Portland Borough Council Ian James said he had been aware of the high number of bike thefts and expressed concern.

But he said that police were working with the Dorset Community Safety Partnership (CSP) to target the thieves.

Councillor James also pointed out that crime overall in Weymouth and Portland was falling.

He said: “Funding is available through the CSP to target particularly areas relating to crime and this would be a good example.

“Money was made available to help tackle the problems that had been experienced on Portland over the summer and offenders are being brought to justice in relation to that.”

Coun James supported calls for cyclists to make use of the town’s effective CCTV system and park their bikes in front of cameras where possible. Ken Reed of Weymouth who is the Cyclists’ Touring Club (CTC) Right to Ride area representative and co-ordinator of the Dorset Cyclists’ Network said: “Unfortunately it’s not difficult to steal a bike very quickly if you’re kitted out.

“Personally I use a fairly secure cable lock which can be cracked. If I wanted to be 100 per cent secure I wouldn’t be able to carry the lock with me. I always lock my bike in a public place rather than somewhere hidden so at least anyone who does target it will have to carry their bolt-croppers in public.”

He advised people to check the CTC website for lock advice: ctc.org.uk Anyone with information about the thefts can contact Dorset Police in confidence on 01305 222222.