Victim grateful to Berkeley police - and tracking device - after e-bike theft

BERKELEY, Calif. - Surveillance video shows a man riding a bike – with a stroller in tow - to a home in North Oakland at about 4 p.m. Friday.

He enters the side gate and sees a $7,000 cargo e-bike belonging to Desmond Brand. 

"He rode in on a much worse bike, I guess," Brand said Thursday with a laugh.

The man goes into the backyard, much to the displeasure of Brand’s cat, named Geralt, who begins meowing.

"This was the cat that was defending my stuff. He’s a Maine Coon. That’s why he’s so big," Brand said, his cat in his arms.

As the cat looked on, the man fiddles with the bike and peers into the home, not knowing - or caring - that he’s on camera. 

After figuring out how to move the kickstand, he walks off with the bike – not realizing there’s an AirTag hidden on the frame.

Brand realized hours later his bike was gone. He found it pinging near Haste and Fulton streets in Berkeley’s Southside neighborhood. He saw his bike, spotted the suspect and called Berkeley police. Officers came within minutes.

"I’m very lucky that the guy rode it to Berkeley, because I’ve had experiences calling 911 in Oakland, here where I live, and it takes like 28 minutes or longer," Brand said. 

Berkeley police swooped in and arrested 57-year-old Shayron Hopkins.

"Totally busted by surprise," Brand said.

Hopkins became agitated as officers detained him. 

Brand was impressed by how the officers calmed him down and interacted with him.

"Let’s go to the car please," one officer told the suspect.

"Thanks for doing an amazing job. My expectations admittedly were low given my previous interactions with police around here, but Berkeley police were amazing," Brand said. "They came promptly, they arrested him."

Berkeley police have a history of tracking down suspects with the help of AirTags. 

Alfredo Morales, has been charged in a spree of break-ins across the East Bay after Berkeley police tracked a stolen e-bike - also outfitted with an AirTag – to Oakland.

"Once I used it to recover this bike, I realized, wow, it’s a great investment. It definitely paid off," Brand said.

Henry Lee is a KTVU crime reporter. E-mail Henry at Henry.Lee@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @henrykleeKTVU and www.facebook.com/henrykleefan