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Bicycle bandit no match for Chicago Police Bike Unit

By Akane Tsuruta

When surveillance video showed a bank robber ride away from the heist on a bicycle, the FBI was quick to call the Chicago Police Department Bicycle Patrol Unit.

The robber had held up numerous banks in Chicago using a bicycle as his getaway. Through the string of robberies last fall, the FBI gathered enough evidence to identify the suspect, track his movements, and locate his home. With this information, the FBI Violent Crime Task Force, 18th and 23rd District Tactical Team Officers, and the Chicago Bicycle Patrol Unit worked together to pursue the “bicycle bandit” for several days, eventually arresting him.

The undercover Chicago Bicycle Patrol officers were crucial in the pursuit and arrest of the bandit.

“[The robber] was very erratic on his bike – riding in the middle of downtown traffic, the wrong way on one-ways, through parking lots and alleys. It would have been very difficult, if not impossible, to follow him without a bike,” said Chicago Bicycle Patrol Sgt. Joe Andruzzi.

Though this is the first bicycling bank robber Sgt. Andruzzi has seen, he said Bicycle Patrol officers are trained for all the situations standard police officers are, except Bicycle Patrol officers receive specialized training that integrates police work and biking. This specialized training and the caliber of the officers has gained the Chicago Bicycle Patrol a reputation as one of the best bicycle patrol programs in the country. Chicago’s Patrol trains other Bicycle Units throughout the United States.

Chicago’s Bicycle Patrol Unit has exploded since its official implementation in 1991. What started as 20 officers and one sergeant has become a force of 450 officers with 100 new officers trained each year. The bicycle Patrol has also become an increasingly important part of police operations. Sgt. Andruzzi said there are great advantages to having a visible and proactive bicycle patrol that is truly in touch with its surroundings. “We see, hear, smell everything that’s going on around us.”

Akane Tsuruta is the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation’s Communication Manager.