Grand theft of a Shimano truck, the low-end groupsets were left behind.

With the current shortage of bicycle components, they are becoming more and more precious, with all that this entails. We have just learned that a truck loaded with Shimano components for some 10,000 bicycles was stolen on January 21. The most surprising thing was the way in which the theft took place.

A truck loaded with Shimano components for 10,000 bicycles is stolen

Bike Fun International is the largest bicycle manufacturer in the Czech Republic, and last January it was the victim of a theft of components to assemble up to 10,000 bicycles. 

The theft took place on the transport route from Germany, and it appears to have been orchestrated by a well-organised group of thieves who had been tracking the material since it was loaded onto the truck. They waited for the transporter to park the vehicle at a German motorway rest area and proceeded to gas the cab to ensure that the driver did not wake up.

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With the driver out of the way, the thieves had time to empty the truck almost completely, leaving only 9 boxes of Shimano components of the cheapest and most basic groupsets. They knew perfectly well the material they had to take. After the robbery they emptied a fire extinguisher inside the truck to eliminate possible evidence.

BFI supply chain director Petr Krkoska explained: "We really haven't seen this situation before. Even Shimano has not faced with a targeted robbery of a shipment on a similar scale. We hope that due to the shortage of parts, these cases will not be repeated, because despite all the measures we have set up, no insurance cover can compensate us for the loss and especially the reputation for late delivery. We decided to communicate this matter to warn other producers, because it could happen to them also."