Police tracked a prolific bike thief more than six miles after setting up a sting operation outside the Co-op in West Bridgford.
Neighbourhood Inspector Craig Berry, from Nottinghamshire Police, has described how bike theft has become a major issue for residents living in the 'affluent' area.
For the month of October, there were around 20 reports of bikes being stolen, some of which were from garages and sheds in Lady Bay and from the centre of West Bridgford.
Thieves would target "two or three" sheds in one night, sometimes prowling at four in the morning.
Inspector Berry said his team decided to take on the plain clothes approach and catch criminals in the act, as burglaries had also spiked as well, with 10 within a square mile of each other.
Inspector Berry said: "Offenders travel out to us; they will travel from the city or cross borders to commit offences. People roam the streets or drive the streets.
"We will stop them to see if they live in the area or if they are there for a criminal reason.
"High visibility yellow jackets are not the best way of getting that intelligence.
"The plain clothes approach gives us that opportunity to get closer to people.
"We stopped a lot of people and a lot of cars and when there has been grounds we have searched people."
The team also put 'capture bikes' fitted with a police tracker in areas targeted by bike thieves.
The most recent was outside the Co-op in West Bridgford.
He said: "They are decent bikes with trackers fitted in them. We put a lock on the bike to not make it too easy.
"We put it in a place where there has been some similar offences and then see if it is stolen. It was stolen and we tracked the bike to Aspley.
"We do take these crimes seriously. With bike thefts victims can do a lot to help themselves.
"They will ride on £2,000 to £3,000 bikes but use a £5 to £10 lock.
"Invest in a good quality lock - and security for your shed and garage. Sometimes the bike is worth more than the shed."
He said some of the stolen bikes from Nottinghamshire have been found elsewhere in the Midlands and advertised on websites.
"They have got good re-sale," he added. "The market for stolen bikes is a complex one but they will be taken apart and moved around."
He said West Bridgford is "attractive to criminals" because it is deemed an "affluent" area, with more students moving there due to the close proximity to the Clifton campus.
He said: "We don't suffer the same level of violent crime that other areas of the county suffer.
"We are very fortunate, but that does not mean we do not have challenges.
"Acquisitive crime including house burglaries and garage and shed burglaries - they are a constant battle."
