Citizen turns in Lance Armstrong's stolen bicycle to police

A Sacramento resident walked into the Sacramento police headquarters this morning with Lance Armstrong's stolen time trial bicycle, solving a case that police had been working on since Sunday.

Although a police spokesman said he would not go into the details about how the person acquired the bicycle, “he is not a suspect at this time.”

The bicycle “appears to be in good condition with the wheels and the frame, however the mechanics for the team will have to review it … to see if there are any flaws or damage to it.”

The bicycle is Armstrong's time trial bike that emblazoned with the LiveStrong colors and emblem, as well as special numbers reflecting how long Armstrong was retired and how many people died of cancer during that period.

As obviously decorated as it was, the police spokesman said, “We were able to confirm the bike was Lance Armstrong's through the serial number.”

He said the wheels were off when it was brought to the police station. A video at Sacramento Bee shows the press conference and the bike.

The first news of the bicycle's return came while cyclists were out on the road in Stage 4 of the Amgen Tour of California. Ben Coates, Trek's liaison with Team Astana, confirmed the bicycle was recovered.

“Police are still investigating so I don't have details. Can't wait to see it and make sure it is still rideable.”

The TwitPic above shows a Sacramento police officer with the bike. It has since been taken off line.

The time trial bike, valued at $10,000 to $15,000, was among three taken from an unmarked team moving van parked at Sacramento hotel following Saturday's prologue. One bike, used by Janez Brajkovic, was found at the hotel and determined to have been misplaced. Two others are still unaccounted for.

Check out Facebook page: “1 million Citizens Looking for Lance Armstrong's Bike”

[Earlier news]

If you're in Northern California today, be on the look out for someone riding this bicycle. Person or persons unknown stole it and three other time trial bicycles from the Astana team trailer overnight.

 Lance Armstrong noted on Twitter that he was awakened with the news:

“Whoa!! They just came to my room and said our truck was broken into and someone stole my time trial bike! Wtf?!? APB out to the twitterati.”

Later:

“There is only one like it in the world therefore hard to pawn it off. Reward being offered.”

Yeah. You'd be crazy to try and sell it on Craigslist or eBay. Heck, you'd be crazy to take it in the first place. Other cyclists might be suspicious if you showed up with it at a local club ride.

For Armstrong's sake, I hope it was dropped off behind a dumpster someplace and will be found soon. More likely it's sinking to the bottom of a canal after the thieves realized the bike is so hot. Hmmm. Are the time trial bikes outfitted with GPS units?

The other time trial bikes were used by Janez Brajkovic, Steve Morabito and Yaroslav Popovych on Saturday at the Amgen Tour of California prologue in Sacramento. They were taken from an unmarked moving truck outside a Sacramento hotel.

Armstrong is next scheduled to use the bike at the individual time trial event in Solvang; VeloNews reports he has a backup bike, although it doesn't have the custom paint job.

Like his Trek Madone 6.9 used in the Tour Down Under, this bike is customized with his LiveStrong colors and special numbers: “1274” — the number of days he was out of pro cycing, and “27.5” — the number in millions of people who have died from cancer during the time.