Lakewood bike repair station

A bicycle repair station at Lakewood Park.

(Patrick Cooley/NEOMG)

LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- Lakewood police have received a dramatic spike in bicycle theft reports as the weather has turned warmer in recent days.

Officers have taken a bicycle theft reports at a rate of nearly one a day for the last week, according to police records.

Bicycle theft is largely a crime of opportunity, according to police. Thieves don't target any particular brand, they simply snatch the bike they think is easiest to steal.

In most of the recent incidents, the bicycles were left unlocked, according to reports.

Most of the recent bike thefts were reported on the eastern side of Lakewood.

A Robin Avenue man told police on Sunday afternoon that his son left a bicycle unlocked on a rack outside the Lakewood Public Library's Madison Avenue branch.

A Clarence Avenue woman told police Saturday about noon that she left her bicycle on her back porch when she came home that morning and someone stole it, a police report said.

A Delaware Avenue man told police Friday afternoon that his daughter rode her bicycle to a her job at a Detroit Avenue Burger King the previous morning and when she left work several hours later, it was gone, a report said.

A bicycle owner told Lakewood police Thursday afternoon that his bike was stolen from a rack near Rozi's Wine House even though he put a lock on it, police records said.

In the only incident with a witness, a Ridgewood Avenue woman said she saw three teenage boys steal her son's bicycle and flee Sunday afternoon, according to a police report. Police searched the area, but were unable to find anyone matching the description of the bicycle thieves.

Even bikes that are locked are still vulnerable, as Northeast Ohio Media Group reporter Mary Kilpatrick found when she spoke with Blazing Saddle Cycle owner James Rychak about the effectiveness of certain types of locks. You can watch the video here.