Personally I like the tracking idea.
One time these punks knocked over my bike and then smashed all the mirrors of cars up and down the street. They were drunk.
I saw them just finish knocking mine over and celebrating from my window. I got dressed and ran downstairs and by then they were 6 cars down smashing some mirrors. I could tell they were drunk and they took no notice that I was staring them down. They went on their way, so I followed them. They turned the corner and went into a convenience store for more booze (UK off licence shop), then came back on the other side of the street, smashing more mirrors.
I called the police and gave an inch perfect description of the 2 punks; their clothes, shoes, height, weight, hair colour, EVERYTHING! Then they went into the pub a few blocks down.
The cops show up 5 mins later on the street and make me repeat EVERYTHING!!!! I asked "didn't you get the description from dispatch?", they replied "Yes but we need to confirm". So we wasted more time and I confirmed again in extreme detail. I then told them they were in the pub across the street and had not come out. The cops said they would go in an investigate and come to my door later. I told them not to come to my door with a car full of punks cause then they will know who ratted them out!!!! They said not to worry.
So 30 mins later they show up at my door saying they could not find anyone matching my description and that there was nothing they could do. I asked if they had seen anyone in the bar with the green and white striped shirt I described. They said there were 2 possibles but they couldn't confirm which one, so they couldn't pursue it.
I said, let me come with you back to the pub and I will point them out. The cops said no, that is not allowed. I said fine, arrest both and I will pick the one I saw. The cops said no. I said, what "f'n good are you?" One cop got upset and wanted to leave, the other wanted to scold me and then asked whether I wanted a report for insurance. I got more upset and said something like "Is that all you're good for, filing insurance papers? I challenge you to do your jobs and you ask if I need a form? You are useless, I don't need anything from you, the damage is around the deductable, so even in that regard you are useless"
I was so ****** off, I tore upstairs and ranted to my wife about how weak the good people are, and we then agreed to stake out the pub and find these two bastards ourselves.
So we dressed in black, and got into out little black car and sat outside the pub and watched for an hour. Eventually 1 of the guys I described came out to the beer garden. So I called the cops and told them to get over here, that the first time they screwed it up, and now I have one of the guys in my sight and will point him out, so get here in a few minutes so he doesn't go back in!!! They showed, I pointed out one guy. They nabbed him....but then....
The pub was closing, and 30+ guys discharged as the cops were arresting "one of their own". All the drunk chavs harassed the cops and intimidated them. The cops came back past my car and told us "the area isn't safe, we are going back to the station, follow us, if you stay we cannot protect you". To which I exclaimed "NOT SAFE?!?! YOU'RE THE POLICE, CALL BACK UP!!!!!", to which they replied "There is no back up! If we converse much longer, the crowd will spot you, so either follow us or get away, but don't stay".
So we split quick time as the crowd was approaching. We did a U-turn and chose not to follow the police but meet them back at the station.
The cops were not able to nab the second (striped shirt guy) because he was in the unruly mob. In the end we stayed at the station another 4 hours until 3am giving 3 different testimonies in full exhaustive hand writing, mine, my wife's and her mothers.
The next morning they came to dust for prints (useless on a bike cover), because the drunk chav denied the whole thing all night long. After the dusting I was called and told the case was being dropped because a magistrate doesn't feel there is enough to convict.
Now the ****** knew where I lived and knew he was untouchable! The cop also confessed those 2 were known trouble makers from a known troublesome estate / housing project and that pub was a known dive and has been and is in the process of being forced to close as a result of numerous complaints over the years of its clientele.
So since I was the only bike related complaint, well then they would know where I live! So I was boned!!!!
The cops also said this..."the other damaged mirrors, they could not pursue, as they could only process complaints from the registered owners of the damaged property" meaning my witness testimony + my wife, seeing these 2 guys damage over 50 cars up and down the street was inactionable unless each owner went to the police themselves! WTF!!!!!!!!!!!
The cops wouldn't even visit each owner to inform them!!!!!
So moral of the story.....
If you follow them, you may have some success, but then you will enter into legal red tape and you will be fighting the system and left exposed and vulnerable. What seems straight forward and just and fair is not. If you go the darker route of justice you will end up having to go the full extent. You will literally become Batman!!!!
Do not allow anyone to know you are associated. Do not let the people you are following know it is because of the bike, because then they will know where you live! If you jump them with ski masks you better make them think it is due to a bad drug deal in their past, owed money, or you're a rival gang jacking them. But you will be entering dark territory and you must distance it from your normal life to an expert degree. Burn your clothes afterwards like you'll be on the next episode of CSI or something!
Welcome to your new alter ego. PS capes are lame an ineffectual.
