South Shields man arrested after hiding from police as they searched his home

Police seized 11 bikes and arrested three riders amid a crackdown on motorcycle crime.

A string of seizures were made across South Tyneside and Wearside- with one South Shields resident arrested.

Upon attending an address in South Shields, officers located a suspected stolen scooter with a tampered plate. The occupant attempted to hide from police- but was quickly found and placed in handcuffs. A stash of Class B drugs were also seized from inside the house.

Elsewhere, three bikes all believed to have been stolen from the Concord area were successfully located at an address in Washington on Tuesday (April 16), along with a number of false plates.

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In Sunderland, plain-clothed officers spotted a nuisance rider in the Hylton Castle area and tracked him to a nearby home. The man in his 20s was found to have no insurance.

Sergeant Chris Mcclennan, of Northumbria Police, coordinated this week’s Op Capio activity and praised the work of everyone involved.

He said: “We’re well aware of the detrimental impact that motorcycle-related crime can have across Northumbria and that’s why it’s a priority for us to seize these bikes and identify the riders.

“The activity this week follows weeks of intelligence gathering and information provided by our communities – and the results speak for themselves.

“This proactive action is not in isolation, and we have officers across the entire Force area targeting nuisance riders and looking to meet motorcycle-related crime head-on.

“As ever, I’d like to thank the public who continue to support us – and would encourage anyone who has information about motorcycle-related crime in their area to get in touch with us and report it. By doing so, that will allow us to take robust action.

“Please also contact us if you know where these bikes are being stored overnight. Your information could prove pivotal in our ongoing crackdown on this type of criminality.”