Graveyard of stolen bike parts in Manunda bushlands

Far Northern kids are being issued with death threats in exchange for their bikes or e-scooters, with a suburban graveyard of parts revealing a growing black market.

Far Northern kids are being issued with death threats in exchange for their bikes or e-scooters, with a suburban graveyard of parts revealing an emerging black market.

Social media posts show numerous reported bike thefts occurring every day and now, shocking images from bushland near Chaplain Ave in Manunda reveal a destitute graveyard of tossed and disassembled bike parts.

More than a dozen bike wheels and parts lay tossed together as the number of thefts grow across the region.

A bicycle graveyard in bushland at Manunda which is bordered by Wilkinson, Fearnley, Anderson and English Streets. Picture: Brendan Radke

Bungalow bike rider Aidan MacGregor said he had bikes stolen on numerous occasions and had seen thefts spike drastically since the Covid pandemic, with parts dumped all across Cairns.

He labelled the escalation in crime “putrid”.

“Bikes get stolen here in Cairns like it’s nothing, either they get used or they get taken for parts or (dumped) in a creek,” he said.

“You have to buy yourself a bike lock that’s actually chained and has a fat padlock because people come with a bolt cutter.”

But the bikes are not only being stolen, they’re being forcibly taken too.

Bungalow resident Aidan MacGregor rides his bike through the Manunda bush tracks every week. Picture: Brendan Radke

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Manoora dad Phill Mulherin said his teenage son was threatened by a 30 to 40-year-old man who said he would “kill him” if he didn’t hand over his bike on Anderson St.

“It was so traumatic for him; he’s not real enthused about getting another one,” he said.

“But we also had the talk in saying you can’t let these people win, you can’t let them wreck your freedom.”

The region’s crime wave has pushed Mr Mulherin’s family into considering to leave Cairns as he said he couldn’t think of how it could be fixed.

“The kids aren’t safe coming and going to school and that’s the last thing you need to be worried about,” he said.

More bikes and parts in a “graveyard” at the bushland in Manunda. Picture: Brendan Radke

In a similar incident, Whitfield mum Delissa Walker said her son was threatened by a 20 to 25-year-old man last Sunday afternoon who demanded his electric bike and then stole it.

“We were really upset; he started a new apprenticeship with his father and he paid for that bike out of his own wage,” he said.

“That was his transport … he loves that bike.”

Parts from stolen bikes in a makeshift camp in the bush. Picture: Brendan Radke

Ms Walker’s two girls were eagerly waiting for Santa to get them e-scooters for Christmas but the recent incident left her worried about purchasing expensive items for them.

“These young kids are on bikes and e-scooters, they can be up to $1500, they’re worth a lot of money,” she said.

“They’re selling it, there’s some underground market happening just like you have with the pushbikes.”

Cairns police Senior Constable Heidi Marek said while bike thefts were an issue in Cairns, there was a rising trend in e-scooter thefts.

“In most cases, people are using the bikes and e-scooters to get from place to place, and will dump them when the battery runs out or they are not of use anymore, Snr Const Marek said.

“Personal safety is always a big concern. Kids needs to be aware of their surroundings and no piece of property is more important than your personal safety,” she said.

“The biggest thing for us is that people have recorded serial numbers, we’re constantly recovering bikes and e-scooters and it makes it almost impossible if we don’t have reference numbers to make a report.”

Originally published as Graveyard of stolen bike parts in Manunda bushlands