Bikes fitted for wounded veterans stolen by 3 suspects

TAMPA (FOX 13) - Tampa police are looking for three suspects they say stole two bicycles specially fitted for wounded veterans.

Police said the bikes were stolen in the early morning of Sunday July 3 from a locked garage in a parking area only accessible by residents or guests of the high rise community. Surveillance video from the parking area shows three males, who appeared to be between 14 and 18, walking toward where the bikes were being kept, then walking away with the bikes.

The bikes belonged to Project Hero Central Florida, a veteran's organization that helps wounded service men and women recover from their combat injuries by riding bicycles with others who have suffered similar injuries. 

Police said the bicycles were securely locked in a truck, in a gated parking garage at SkyHouse Apartment Complex in the Channel District of Tampa. Nathan DeWalt, Regional Manager of Project Hero in Central Florida, said he was at a veteran's event in Orlando and had returned home the night before, with the bikes.

DeWalt told police the bikes are normally housed on the campus of St. Pete College Clearwater, but since the school is closed on Sunday, he secured the bikes in his truck.  

The bikes are valued at over $2,500 each and are specially adapted to fit the needs of the injured veterans who ride them. Police and Project Hero Central Florida are asking for the public's help in recovering these bicycles. Anyone with information is asked to call Tampa police.

For anyone who would like to help in the case the bikes are not recovered, visit Project Hero Central Florida.