Crime & Safety

Hoboken Police Recovers 52 Stolen Bikes in Jersey City

Three men were arrested on Wednesday in Hoboken and Jersey City. An investigation is still ongoing.

Hoboken police uncovered a bike theft ring on Wednesday, recovering 52 stolen bikes from two vans parked in Jersey City, police said.

Salah Mostefaoui, 46, and David Surles, 49, were arrested by Hoboken police around 3 p.m. on Wednesday on Union Street in Jersey City, police said. Mostefaoui was charged with fencing and receiving stolen property, police said, and Surles was arrested with conspiracy in fencing as well as receiving stolen property.

The recovered bicycles are the result of dozens of bike thefts over the course of several months in Hoboken and the surrounding area. The operation on Wednesday was completed by the Hoboken detective bureau's Street Crime Unit, under the supervision of Sgt. Edwin Pantoja.

Find out what's happening in Hobokenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Mostefaoui allegedly ran his operation from Jersey City and is also known as "Kareem," according to the police report. He allegedly paid $100 or $150 per stolen bike.

The bike theft ring was allegedly operating out of 317-319 Union Street in Jersey City, police said.

Find out what's happening in Hobokenwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Mostefaoui, a Jersey City resident, allegedly owns two vans, one white and one red, which were both filled with bicycles. Surles is a New York City resident, according to reports.

Mostefaoui allowed the police officers inside his apartment, according to reports, where four bicycles were discovered. The vans as well as the bikes were taken back to police headquarters in Hoboken.

The investigation into the matter is ongoing, police said.

Hobokenites who have had their bicycles stolen are encouraged to look through the 52 recovered bikes to find their stolen property, police said.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.