A Gloucester City Good Samaritan Catches Wise Guy Bike Thief
Monday, June 28, 2021
“You can have it back, I didn’t like it anyway,"
~Bratty bike thief
William E. Cleary Sr. | CNBNews
GLOUCESTER CITY, NJ (June 28, 2021)--Another bike was stolen in the Riverview Heights section of Gloucester City. But, because of a quick-thinking concerned citizen, the bike was returned to the owner. The man, who wished to remain anonymous, said around 845am on Thursday he saw a Latin American juvenile, about 12-14 years old, grab a bike from a nearby Thompson Avenue residence.
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The Good Samaritan said, "The juvenile flew up the street pedaling as fast as he could towards the railroad tracks. He knew I saw him as I yelled at him to drop the bike. When he kept going, I got in my car and headed in the same direction. After a few minutes searching on foot I found him hiding up a driveway alongside a Barnard Avenue home. He had nowhere to run and he gave me the bike when I demanded it. The smart-ass kid had the nerve to say that he was giving up the bike freely because he didn't like it anyway.”
The Good Samaritan said he reported the incident to the police on Thursday.
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Later that same day, a person asked if we knew why the doors on the Nero's Pub, 509 S. Broadway had signs written on the entrances saying "No Colors". Another person said he had heard that some guys wearing cut-offs were seen arguing behind the bar one night.
Sunday afternoon we spoke with the person tending the bar about the sign. She said with a straight face that African Americans were welcomed in Nero's Pub, that the no colors notice was to alert members of motorcycle clubs that they couldn't wear their gang colors in the bar. Sunday the sign was removed from both doorways. There was a nice crowd in the bar, and the place was recently decorated. To our surprise, they sold those hot pickled sausages in a big jar. We hadn't been able to find them in decades. The cold beer and the hot sausage went perfectly together just like we remembered.
Written on the front and side door of Nero's Bar, 509 S.Broadway in chalk are the words No Colors (photo credit Chicken Wings)
According to Wikipedia colors are the insignia, or "patches", worn by motorcycle club members on cut-off vests to identify membership of their club and territorial location. Club patches have been worn by many different groups since the 1960s. They are regarded by many to symbolize an elite amongst motorcyclists and the style has been widely copied by other subcultures and commercialized.
Colors are considered to represent "significant markers of the socialization" of new members to clubs, rank and present a dominant symbol of identity and are marked with related symbolism. They can be embroidered patches sewn onto clothing or stenciled in paint, the primary symbol being the back patch of the club's insignia or logo and generally remain the property of the club. Wearing such clothing is referred to as "flying one's colors". The term has its roots in military history, originating with regimental colors.
A few weeks ago another bicycle was stolen in the same area along with a pickup truck. The bike was taken from E. Thompson Ave., and the pickup truck from North Stinson Ave. The truck was found up in the north end of the city. It had broken down. But the man, a roofing contractor, had his tools stolen.
The security company RING sent out a notice on Saturday night from a Gloucester City resident who said his truck was broken into. Taken were some coins and military IDs. It is not known where in the city that happened. But, a neighbor on North Stinson Avenue said a thief or thieves yanked out the back window in his pickup truck sometime Saturday night, early Sunday morning, and stole $1400 in tools along with a check.
We reached out to Lt. Jason Flood, the spokesman for the police department, and asked him about the bar and also if there had been any burglaries in the city.
The inquiries below were sent to him via email.
Have there been any disturbances at that location (Nero's Pub, 509 S. Broadway) that required a police call? Do you know why there is a sign on the doors of the Pub that say NO COLORS?
Other topics...
In the past two to three weeks have there been any vehicles stolen?
In the past two to three weeks have there been any vehicles broken into?
In the past two to three weeks have there been any homes/businesses broken into?
Flood told us we would have to submit a written Open Public Records Act (OPRA) request because what we were asking would take time to answer.
"Due to the nature of your inquiry and the amount of time it would take to gather the information requested, you would need to complete an OPRA request with the City Clerk."
We did submit an OPRA with those questions along with a question if any bikes had been reported stolen.
The Lieutenant was asked if the police still auction the bicycles they find in the city that are not claimed by the owner(s).
"We no longer sell unclaimed bicycles for several reasons. The process to clear the bicycles for auction is long and tedious, a lot of the bicycles are not worth much, there was poor attendance and little interest in the auction, and the man-hours needed to complete the task were not worth the endeavor. We ended up throwing away a majority of the bicycles. Unfortunately, we can't sell them without following that process," said Flood.
He said the highway department takes the discarded bikes what happens to those that are useable is not known.
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