A brazen man who tried to sell a stolen bike for parts Dec. 6 was arrested when police got an assist from the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce, Police Chief Eric Christensen said.
With the help of an identification from a poster with a photo of the suspect circulated by Jay Lifson, the director of the chamber of commerce, police arrested Rafael Reyna, 22, of Concord, on theft charges.
Christensen gave this account:
On Dec. 6, the suspect entered Sharp Bicycle on Moraga Road with a bike and asked a clerk if the store would buy the bike from his for parts. The clerk looked over the bike and realized it belonged to another customer, who had just left the store with it after repairs. "The owner had walked it to a nearby coffee shop and left it out front unlocked while he got a cup of coffee," Christensen wrote in an email. "This guy obviously picked it up and walked it back over to Sharps."
When confronted by store staff, the man fled the area. Last weekend, Reyna turned himself in to Walnut Creek police and was arrested on a warrant.
After Lifson made a poster and circulated it, police received an email identifying the suspect. "Jay is an excellent partner with the police department," Christensen said.
