The crime-ridden parks where cyclists are threatened with knives and hammers to hand over their expensive bikes to gangs of masked youths

EXCLUSIVE The crime-ridden parks where cyclists are threatened with knives and hammers to hand over their expensive bikes to gangs of masked youths Have you fallen victim to a bike-jacker? Contact rory.tingle@mailonline.co.

uk By RORY TINGLE, HOME AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT FOR MAILONLINE Published: 22:29 EST, 24 February 2025 | Updated: 22:30 EST, 24 February 2025 e-mail View comments Bike-jackers armed with knives and hammers are menacing a string of UK parks - leaving some cyclists too afraid to go out on morning rides. Cycle clubs in London 's Regent's Park are begging the police to begin dawn patrols following a string of violent robberies during the early hours before it opens to cars. But it is far from the only park where riders are being targeted, with one club in Richmond Park warning its members of men on 'high-powered e-bikes ' holding 'bladed weapons'.

Cyclists have also recently fallen victim to armed muggers at green spaces in Derby, St Helen's and Greasby on the Wirral, suggesting it is a nationwide phenomenon. In one particularly shocking incident, a 12-year-old boy had his new £350 Carrera mountain bike stolen by a masked man carrying a knife, while in a separate case a woman riding along a narrow route had her path blocked by three men. One cycle club in North London said four of its members had lost their bikes to muggers, with 'many people' stopping cycling or changing their routines to travel in groups.

The incidents have prompted calls for a police crackdown.