SEVEN-year-old Tylor Patton loved riding his bike.
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He would zoom around the front of his house in south Armidale whenever he had the chance.
Unfortunately someone else decided they liked his red and black BMX as well, because on Christmas Day it was stolen from the front of his Lynches Road home.
His mother and father, Tarnia and Kim, couldn’t believe someone would take a child’s bike on Christmas Day, but hoped someone would dob in the culprits to police.
“It was his Christmas present last year,” Tarnia Patton said.
“They were playing with their toys riding around on the concrete out the front.
“We left to go to mum’s for lunch and it was a full day so we were gone from 10.30am to about 8.30pm.
“But Kim noticed it as soon as we got home.”
The Pattons said the bike was left outside accidentally but were still surprised it was taken when there was a car parked in the driveway.
It was an opportunistic crime and a petty one considering the bike only cost “about $100” when it was new.
But the dollar value of the bike meant little to Tylor, who enjoyed riding it.
“He always rode his bike,” Mrs Patton said.
“He was never off it.
“And because it’s just after Christmas we can’t afford to replace it just yet.”
Fortunately there is an upside to the story.
Tylor’s friend from school, Kurtis, got a new bike for Christmas and has offered to give his old one to Tylor.
The Pattons said that is a lovely gesture from a good friend and will provide Tylor with a bike to ride during the school holidays.
The family would still like the bike back and hope someone might have seen the offender or offenders take the bike, or saw someone with it at a later time.
The bike was a Repco brand BMX with red paintwork and a black seat.
Anyone with information about it should contact police.
