LTC 306-2025 Police Bait BicycleScooter Theft Enforcement UpdateMIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
LTC #306-2025 LETTER TO COMMISSION
TO: Honorable Mayor Steven Meiner and Members of the City Commission
FROM:
DATE:
"}-�� Eric Carpenter, City Manager z:.'.uc �7�
SUBJECT:
July 18, 2025
Police Bait Bicycle/Scooter Theft Enforcement Update
The purpose of this Letter to Commission ("L TC") is to provide an update on the Miami Beach
Police Department's ("MBPD") proactive undercover operations aimed at combating bicycle and
scooter theft in Miami Beach. This L TC is provided pursuant to Resolution No. 2024-33338
("Resolution"), approved by the Mayor and City Commission at the October 30, 2024 City
Commission meeting, where the Administration was directed to engage in proactive undercover
operations twice a month and report the results of the program via L TC after a six (6)-month period.
Beginning in the summer of 2024, MBPD undertook Operation Rolling Wheels which intentionally
allowed bait bicycles to be taken and then tracked for further investigation (instead of making an
immediate arrest). In October 2024, pursuant to the Resolution, MBPD enhanced its efforts in
bicycle and scooter theft investigation. This strategy sought to identify patterns, organized theft
rings, and any potential fencing operations (operations dealing in stolen property including buying,
selling, or trafficking items that were stolen by someone else) that may be contributing to the
ongoing theft issues in the city.
The Administration is sensitive to the frustration experienced by both residents and visitors when
victimized, and although the Resolution only directed staff to conduct details twice a month, MBPD
conducted the operation at least weekly and at times even twice a week. During the course of the
investigation, MBPD detectives cultivated a confidential informant who provided information
related to several individuals known to purchase stolen bicycles and scooters. This effort led to
the initiation of a separate long-term investigation titled Operation Chain Lock.
Under Operation Chain Lock, MBPD detectives worked to identify subjects and locate the base of
their operation. Once the subjects were identified, MBPD detectives conducted controlled
transactions utilizing undercover MBPD officers in order to establish probable cause for a search
of the premises and the subsequent arrest of the subject(s).
Throughout the months of April and May 2025, MBPD detectives compiled evidence for
presentation to a Miami-Dade Assistant State Attorney for review and potential prosecution. The
investigation and initiative ultimately led to the arrest of seven (7) subjects for a variety of felony
charges to include: Grant Theft, Use of Two-way Communication Device in Furtherance of Criminal
Activity, Violation of Probation, and Dealing in Stolen Property. Additionally, a search warrant was
signed by a judge and executed by MBPD officers in the area of the 1400 Block of Lenox Avenue
at the residence of one of the arrestees.