A man who bought a motorbike to help him following the loss of his best friend has been left devastated after it was stolen and remains missing two months later.
Philip Hunter says he has lost all hope after thieves broke through a security chain outside his home on Strathmartine Road.
The 56-year-old immediately contacted police after the theft on May 9 but is no closer to finding his Sinnis Terrain.
Philip told The Courier he planned to get the bike as a way of supporting his friend – who was a wheelchair user – but he died before he had the chance.
He said: “I’m a carer and have been for quite a few years now.
“A year into Covid, my best friend died.
“He was in a wheelchair so I always went round to look after him after I finished work.
“I decided that I would get a motorbike so I could help support him – but he died before I could.”
Afterwards he decided to take a break from work and bought the bike to help him get away from it all.
But shortly after he woke up on May 9 to discover it had been stolen.
‘I’ve lost all hope’
Police said they would be in touch – but Philip said all he has received is a crime number.
He said: “Nobody in the flat block saw anything.
“It was a brand new bike and was chained up.
“Someone, or maybe more people, broke the chain, carried it through the corridor of the block and out the front door.
“Police phoned me the day I reported it with a crime number for insurance.
“But that’s all I’ve heard from them, I’ve not spoken to a police officer or anything.”
Philip has now had to give up his work due to ill health and has been left in debt after losing the bike.
Philip has been left £5,000 in debt
“I’ve even had a message from a friend that someone was riding the bike in Charleston and I reported that too but still nothing has been done,” he added.
“I’ve been on the phone every day to them and even stood in a station asking to speak to someone but nobody would see me.
“The receptionist in the station said my best bet would be to put in a complaint.
“I’m totally distressed by it – I’ve been left around £5,000 in debt.
“I’m still sitting with the broken bits of metal as a reminder of what I don’t have.
“I’ve lost all hope in this city – this has left me in a terrible state.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “On the morning of Tuesday May 9 police received a report of the theft of a Sinnis Terrain motorbike from a property on Strathmartine Road, Dundee.
“Officers are following positive lines of inquiry.”
