CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – (CLARKSVILLENOW) Clarksville Police say a string of recent motorcycle thefts could be part of an organized ring.
Five motorcycles were stolen earlier this week from apartment complexes on Ringgold Rd., Fort Campbell Blvd. and from a residence on Bear Court.
Police Sgt. Griffie Briggs told News 2 the thefts do not appear to be random. “This is very much a string that’s going on and very much a work of several people,” he said.
According to Briggs the thieves cut wires and removed fuses at each apartment building to operate in the dark.
This is not a new issue in Clarksville. Over the past three years police have periodically issued alerts for motorcycle thefts that follow the same pattern of targeting sport-type bikes in parking lots of area apartments.
According to The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB), the top 10 most stolen motorcycles in 2017 by manufacturer were American Honda Motor Co., Inc. (8,781 thefts), Yamaha Motor Corporation (7,298), American Suzuki Motor Corporation (5,530), Harley Davidson, Inc. (5,138), Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. (5,101), Taotao Group Co. Ltd (2,305), KTM Sportmotorcycle AG (722), Genuine Cycle (532), Ducati Motor Holding (520), and Kymco U.S.A., Inc. (484).
Download the complete NICB report and an infographic.
Suggested precautions include:
• Avoid parking in the general parking area and avoid parking the motorcycle in view from major thoroughfares.
• If available on site, rent a garage.
• Rent an apartment on the ground floor and bring the motorcycle inside.
• Rent a storage unit if there are no garages on site and drive to the motorcycle.
- If you can only rent, rent a home with a place to store your motorcycle.
Investigators say a white pickup truck is linked to the thefts.
This is an ongoing investigation and police continue to follow leads on possible suspects.
Anyone with information can contact Detective Delle at 931-648-0656 ext. 5427, the TIPSLINE at 931-645-8477, or submit a tip anonymously at P3tips.com/591.