Sheriff Credits Bike Community with Recovery of Stolen Ari Bikes
Biking communities are tight-knit, and it was L.A.'s that resulted in 288 stolen bikes being recovered and the arrest of the thieves, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department says.
In the May 29 press release, the LASD announced the arrest of five men in connection with the April theft of $1.7 million of Ari mountain bikes and eMTBs.
Samvel Karapetyan, Vazgen Avagyan, Narek Badalyan, Vladimir Gyulankaryan and Davit Grigoryan were arrested by the LASD's Cargo Criminal Apprehension Team (Cargo CATs) on suspicion of orchestrating the theft by redirecting truck drivers and using box truck and passenger vehicles to transport stolen cargo.Ari Bikes contacted the LASD on April 21 to report the theft of 337 bikes that were to be trucked from the Port of L.A. to Ari's Lindon, Utah, location. The Cargo CATs division worked closely with Ari Bikes and the biking community in the L.A. region, the LASD said in the release.
Strong leads from area cyclists and a Santa Clarita bike shop quickly lead to the identification of several of the suspects and several warehouse locations where the bikes were being stored. Two search warrants were executed, and 288 Ari Bikes and other stolen goods were recovered and several suspects were arrested.
'The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Majors Crime Bureau is dedicated to combatting retail and cargo theft,' Captain Calvin Mah said. 'We are specifically trained to investigate all major theft groups as their criminal activities adversely affect the community. When these theft incidents occur, our detectives will work with all community members who are willing to provide information which can lead to an arrest. I am proud of our detectives' efforts in bringing these suspects into custody. I am also encouraging all community members to notify us when they have information related to retail or cargo theft.'Ari Bikes has said that a majority of the recovered bikes, including Signal Peak 3.0s and Timp Peak 2.0s, were in their packaging and unharmed. Despite the good news for Ari, 49 Ari bikes remain missing.
Anyone with information about the remaining Ari Bikes is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-TIPS (8477). Callers may remain anonymous.
This story was originally reported by BikeMag on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
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