Warren, Michigan mega-Realtor Ralph Roberts has probably had enough of crimestopping. The recent recipient of Realty Times' Raising Arizona Award for foiling a diaper/baby food thief at his local Kroger, Roberts' brokerage was targeted by the "Bicycle Bandits," two scofflaws that broke into one of his buildings, possibly to steal Roberts' beloved "Nail."

"The Nail" is a Detroit-area icon, part of a gigantic old Uniroyal tire that began its ride through history as a Ferris wheel at the 1964 World's Fair in New York. Over 188 train cars moved it to Detroit where it stood sentry for years as part of an ad campaign that suggested that no nail could penetrate a Nail-Guard tire.

In 2003, the tire was renovated and The Nail, which never penetrated the tire, was put on eBay where Roberts bought it for $3000. Since then, The Nail has been used by charitable organizations in the area to raise over $2 million. Roberts made out, too. He bought a Hummer to move The Nail around and wrote off the cost of both.

But The Nail might not have been the true target, says Roberts. Instead the thieves might have been after something far more profitable - identities.

The men were known as the "Bicycle Bandits" because they would use bikes to get in and out of locations quickly, and then ride to a getaway vehicle.

Thanks to recently installed state-of-the-art security cameras, Roberts got red-carpet quality shots of two brothers entering his real estate brokerage building on Schoenherr Street. As alarms went off, the two men quickly left without taking anything, but Roberts was able to turn the clear, digital pics over to the police for easy identification.

"Today I received a phone call from the detective working on the "Bicycle Bandits" case, Roberts told Realty Times a couple of days ago. "The break-in occurred August 27,2004, on an early Friday morning. We had just upgraded our security system, and we were able to record the break-in and retrieve exceptional pictures of the men. Both men have been apprehended, one locally and the other in Florida. The two turned out to be brothers, both with extensive "rap sheets."

Both men were carrying false identities when they were arrested.

"They were identify theft guys," says Roberts, who is now very glad that he has installed fireproof cabinets and safes. "They are coming into mortgage, title and real estate companies to steal identities. You might have a lot of information about a buyer or seller."

Roberts says the men asked the detectives what proof the police had that they broke into a real estate company. The police showed them Roberts' excellent photo. The camera also records the time.

"They were only there 13 seconds," says Roberts.

There was also blood, where the men had hurt themselves which will now be DNA-tested, nailing the case down even further, pardon the pun. The men later broke into a doctor's office to fix the bleeding, and there may be additional evidence there.

Whether The Nail or client identities were the target is a moot point, but the lesson for Realtors, of course, is that brokerages need security in order to protect client and associates identities so they can't be stolen.

"We've all upgraded our phones, now your security needs to be digital," says Roberts. "It's good to know who comes in, and you have it on your hard drive."

Roberts says, "I want to thank the Warren Police department, especially Detective Keitz for their continued efforts to bring these men to justice."

Published: January 12, 2005

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