A cycle thief has been jailed for 12 weeks after being caught red handed stealing a bike in Wandsworth.

John Holloway, 24, of Long Lane, SE1 was sentenced at Wimbledon Magistrates Court to four weeks imprisonment for theft of a pedal cycle.

He will also serve an additional eight weeks imprisonment as a result of him re-offending while subject to a suspended sentence for a previous theft of pedal cycle offence.

A second man, Thomas O'Connor, 21, of Swan Road, SE16 was fined for handling stolen goods.

On Wednesday 24th April officers from the Cycle Task Force and Wandsworth Safer Transport Team, part of the Transport for London funded Safer Transport Command, were carrying out a bicycle operation in Balham as part of Project Cycle Ops - a partnership initiative to tackle cycle theft in the Capital.

Officers witnessed both O'Connor and Holloway approach a locked bicycle at Balham train station. O'Connor, who was on a Raleigh Urban 700 bicycle, acted as look-out while Holloway cut the lock.

Both were quickly detained by officers who carried out checks on the Raleigh bicycle O'Connor was riding.

Officers checked BikeRegister.com as there was a security marking on the frame.The Raleigh was registered on their database, however the owner was not O'Connor.

The legitimate owner was contacted and informed officers he had left his bicycle secured outside his home address in Balham High Road that morning and has just returned home to find it was no longer there.

The fact the owner had security marked and registered his Raleigh on BikeRegister resulted in the bike being recovered and subsequently returned to him.

Chief Superintendent Sultan Taylor, Safer Transport Command said: "Had the stolen Raleigh not been security marked and registered, officers would not have been able to identify an owner. We encourage all cyclists to register details of their bike on the MPS preferred cycle online registration service - www.bikeregister.com for this reason.

"We are determined to bring cycle thieves to justice and are working closley with BTP, City of London Police and Transport for London to reduce cycle theft accross London."