Never miss Bristol news again - sign up to receive our newsletter straight to your inbox Sign up Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Invalid Email

An increasingly notorious group of motorcycle thieves appears to be holding another bike owner to ransom.

A fresh image of a motorbike has appeared on the ‘biketakerrr’ Instagram page, asking who it belongs to and stating the bidding would start at £250.

This comes just days after an image of a stolen 1951 Triumph Thunderbird PF0 766 appeared on the Instagram account following a police appeal for information.

The vintage motorbike was stolen from a Clifton garage overnight on Wednesday, February 7 and later spotted by police in Southmead.

In the comments below the photo, the person or persons behind the account crudely demanded £1,000 from the owner of bike – which is worth £7,000 to £10,000 – for its safe return, otherwise it would be torched.

True to their word, the bike thieves posted a video the following day of the Triumph being flipped upside-down and set alight with the caption "too hot to handle", claiming in the comments that the owner had failed to pay in the prescribed time period.

Now it seems the so-called ‘Bristol Bike Taker’ gang are trying their luck once again – raising concerns that they are attempting to monetize their criminal activities.

On Wednesday, February 14 the gang took to Instagram once more to post a dark image of another motorbike with the caption “Is this anyone’s [sic] got this last night starting bid £250”.

It appears they are either looking for payment from the owner or trying to auction it off to the highest bidder.

In the comments below the picture there is no suggestion of the fate of the bike if the gang don’t receive payment, although based on the group's track record it is not hard to imagine what will happen

(Image: Instagram)

The gang – which is mostly comprised of youths and teenagers from north Bristol – steals bikes while boasting about their exploits online.

A number of members of the gang have been caught and prosecuted by the police in the past year - after officers set up a special investigation, named Operation Buell, to monitor the gang’s online presence.

However, this latest account would suggest the Bristol bike gang is still active.

Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will start in 8 Cancel Play now

The page biography is as brazen as the thieves who hide behind it, taunting the police with statements like “no face no case” and “f*** ASP” – the abbreviation for Avon and Somerset Police .

The Triumph and this latest bike are just two of dozens that have been flaunted by the thieves on the ‘biketakerrr’ page, which also includes video clips of stolen bikes being ridden and burned.