Horror footage shows moment hammer-wielding 'bikejackers' force man off £4,200 bicycle in Regent's Park
27 February 2025, 12:44
Cyclist being robbed of his bicycle in Regent's Park
This is the moment a pair of 'bikejackers' force a man off his expensive bike in Regent's Park by threatening him with a hammer.
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Footage shared by police shows Patrick Conneely being pursued and cornered by thugs on a moped while cycling round the central London park's Outer Circle last month.
It's part of a growing trend, with more and more cyclists in the central London park being attacked - leaving many now terrified to go out.
Mr Conneely initially refused to give up his £4,200 bike when being harassed by the gangsters - leading to one of them pulling out a hammer and threatening him with it.
This thug then grabbed the bike and put it over his head as his partner in crime made to speed both of them away.
At this point, Mr Conneely tried to push the moped over, but the thugs were able to make their getaway. An onlooker had already called the police.
Mr Conneely said he was reluctant to go back to Regent's Park. "This is a place we go to exercise and it's right in the centre of London - we should be able to enjoy it safely," he told Mail Online.
The park is closed to cars from 5.45-7.45am, which has made it a haven for biking clubs, of which there are now over 30.
But in recent years, bike thieves have started operating at this time, when it is still dark and cyclists are easier to prey upon.
In the year to December 2023, some 768 violent attacks on cyclists were recorded each week across London - the equivalent of 15 such assaults every week.
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Officers don't start patrolling the park until 8am and are said to have told cyclists that they cannot start any earlier.
Sean Epstein, of the Regent's Park Cyclists group, said: "What is special about Regent's Park is that it's shut to cars in the morning. There are main through roads [to the park] in the mornings.
"Mopeds just stand and wait - two people on a moped of motorbike - plates removed, with masks or balaclavas.
'Most robbers kick riders off their bikes while they're riding and wrestle their bikes off them.'Last winter the robberies kept increasing.
"Our clubs were getting hit on a weekly basis.
"It's always the same method and the same response from the police: treating it like stolen property, shrugging and saying, "Sorry, we've got no leads.. You should get insurance".
"It has led to a general fear and inability for people to feel safe."
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Last month LBC's Johnny Jenkins recounted how he had been attacked by 'bikejackers' in the park.
"Two masked thugs on electric bikes approached me, demanding I hand over my bike," he wrote.
"I let out a piercing scream – I couldn’t believe this was happening. It felt like I’d been thrown into a nightmare I couldn’t wake up from."
Police were no use and so he was left out over £1,000 out of pocket because of the stolen bike.
Another cyclist told of how he was attacked by men on a moped.
