SHOCKING footage reveals an unregistered dirt bike rider tearing along a footpath in Newcastle in broad daylight.
The person on the bike was filmed riding along the pedestrian area of a bridge and along a path on the busy Lambton Road in Broadmeadow just after 11.15am on Thursday.
Senior police slammed the motorbike rider's actions as "extremely dangerous".
"Not only did they place themselves at risk of serious injury, operating in close proximity to the roadway, but also pedestrians," Newcastle and Hunter highway patrol Chief Inspector Thomas Barnes said.
"Particularly where vulnerable members of the community were concerned, any impact with a motorcycle in such circumstances could have fatal consequences."
In the footage obtained by the Newcastle Herald, the rider can be seen wearing a pink chequered Fox brand jersey, blue Fox pants with red and white highlights, a white helmet, and a Champion brand sports bag over their shoulder.
Police said the person involved appeared to be a young man.
Chief Inspector Barnes said the report was under investigation and anyone with information about the rider or owner of the motorbike should contact Newcastle police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Chief Inspector Barnes warned the offender, and others thinking about riding their motorbikes dangerously, could face criminal charges or multiple fines.
He said the offences of riding on the footpath; using an unregistered, uninsured, unroadworthy vehicle; potentially while unlicensed, could add up to more than $2000 in fines alone.
"The last thing police want is for anyone, let alone a child or a young person with their whole life ahead of them, to be killed or seriously injured in clearly preventable circumstances," Chief Inspector Barnes told the Herald.
He urged parents and carers to make sure that young people with access to an unregistered motorbike only rode them on private property, under strict supervision, and with all the necessary safety equipment.
"And further, when not being so used, they are secured in a manner that prevents them being taken without permission," he said.
The worrying footage was captured just a month after a teenager was tragically killed in a trail bike crash in the Upper Hunter.
A 17-year-old boy and his 22-year-old passenger were thrown from a Yamaha YZ250 when the bike struck a median strip guard rail at a Muswellbrook intersection about 5pm on December 9, 2023.
The younger man died at the scene and the passenger was flown to John Hunter Hospital.
Chief Inspector Barnes had driven past a roadside memorial for the teenager earlier on Thursday.
"The stark reality of what at first may appear like just fun and games is not lost on me, nor I am sure, is it lost on those who knew and continue to grieve for them," he said.
Separately, a teenager was ordered to front Newcastle Local Court after he was charged with motorcycle-related offences last week.
His arrest came after Proactive Crime Team officers spotted a yellow unregistered motorcycle being ridden on the Newcastle Inner City Bypass at Jesmond on December 19.
Police alleged the rider was not wearing a helmet and was speeding.
Police further claim they had seen the same 18-year-old doing wheelies, riding on the incorrect side of the road, and riding on footpaths.
Officers homed in on the man at Lambton on January 4, and allege a stolen motorbike was also recovered.
A dirt bike rider was seriously hurt in a crash with a truck at Windale in September last year.
A 20-year-old man was taken to John Hunter Hospital with leg, spinal and pelvic injuries.
