Portland Man Travels to Seattle to Confront Alleged Bike Thief

If you've ever wanted to confront a thief for something that's been stolen, say a bicycle, this one's for you.

Jake Gillum's bike was stolen from him at the beginning of August. But a few days after it happened, he found his bike listed on Craigslist in Seattle. He lives in Portland.

So Gillum and some friends contacted the seller and ambushed him at a shopping mall in Seattle. He got back his bike, the alleged thief was arrested, and he caught it all on camera.

To people who say hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, they obviously have never known a man whose bike was stolen.

Gillum accused the alleged thief, Craig Ackerman, of stealing the bike and told him police were on their way. Ackerman tried to run but Gillum chased him on his newly-recovered bike.

While chasing, Gillum repeatedly accused Ackerman of stealing the bike. About four and half minutes into this video, you can hear Ackerman admit that he knew the bike was stolen when he bought it off Craigslist. Warning: this video contains more than a few F-bombs.

Perhaps the most amusing part of this story is when Ackerman tells Gillum that buying stolen property isn't a crime.

Say what now?

Looks like someone didn't check his facts because buying or selling property that you know is stolen is definitely a crime. In Washington the crime is in fact called 'trafficking in stolen property.'

Trafficking being the word lawyers use for 'buying and selling' when they want to sound fancy.

Ackerman must have realized this when cops arrested him for that crime which is a felony in Washington.

It appears that all's well that ends well here. Gillum has his bike back and he has an audio recording of what appears to be the bike thief admitting to knowingly buying a stolen bike. Thieves beware: bikers don't forgive.

Related Resources:

• Chicken and 2 Gorillas Commit Bicycle Theft (FindLaw's Legally Weird)
• Seattle's Cycling Mayor is a Victim of Bike Theft (FindLaw's Legally Weird)
• Woman Steals Back Her Stolen Bike (FindLaw's Blotter)