THEY thought they’d never see it again.

When Tristan Grose had his £600 bike stolen outside a Hampshire train station, the best he could hope for was that the thief was caught in the act on CCTV and that maybe the police would recognise him.

He is one of up to 50 people a week currently falling victim to bicycle thieves who are operating across the county, stealing the bikes to use as transport or break up for parts.

But the 19-yearold geology student never counted on getting his bicycle back within a matter of days after his girlfriend, by chance, came face-to-face with the suspected thief.

Law student Imogen Moult was making her way to Fareham train station to travel to university in Winchester when she spotted the unmistakable lime green bike – with a youth straddling it.

As she approached him, 19-yearold Imogen asked him where he had got the bike from because it looked just like Tristans’ Commencal black and lime green mountain bike.

“He went a bit quiet and said it was his mate’s bike and he was just waiting for him,” said Imogen, who then stood and watched in disbelief as he got off the bike and walked off as she started to call the police.

“He left it against a wheelie bin outside a shop in the town centre and just wandered off – but I was too busy checking the bike and ensuring I hadn’t made a mistake and it was d e f i n i t e l y Tristan’s.”

Local police were despatched to the scene and Imogen had to make a second police statement, only days after reporting it, before she was handed the bike back.

Officers are now looking at CCTV from the area and are on the trail of the youth.

Imogen added: “Tristan is really happy the bike is back – he was at uni when it all happened. As we are students, it’s not as if we can just afford a replacement, but it did cost me a day at university getting it back.”

As reported by the Daily Echo last week, around seven people a day are currently falling victim to the bike thieves who are stealing cycles from train stations and shopping centres.

The problem has grown so much that special police operations are now under way – the latest one in Shirley, Southampton, led to a man being arrested after being found on a stolen bike, carrying a set of bolt cutters.