A GANG of cycle thieves who wore high visibility vests while stealing £23,479 worth of valuable bikes from across the region have been jailed.

The group of five scoured university campuses, hospitals and workplaces in North Yorkshire, Teesside and York to identify the most expensive bikes before stealing them and selling them on, York Crown Court heard.

In total, there were 48 thefts across the region.

Bryan Craig Horrigan, 42, of Bankhead Road, Northallerton; Darren Peter Ellis, 38, of Borough Road, Middlesbrough; Chantelle Louise Serginson, 28, of Bridge Street West, Middlesbrough and Christopher Wilson, 27, of Caemavor Close, Middlesbrough, all pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal bicycles between April and July last year. A fifth person had already been sentenced for the matter in a youth court.

Recorder Andrew Stubbs QC said the group had committed "deliberate, planned, professional" crimes which affected a great many people, including schoolchildren.

He said the crimewave had hit cyclists in York particularly hard, causing uncertainty, including a hotel worker, who was forced to walk a ten-mile round trip to and from work after being left with no bike.

He added: "You will have taken from these schoolchildren the most expensive item they possess."

The court heard how Ellis was involved in all but one of the thefts, initially getting lifts from Serginson. Wilson offered advice on the cost of the bikes, some of which were known to have been taken to his home, before they were sold on.

At around the time Serginson, who was involved in 25 of the incidents, decided not to carry on and Horrigan became involved. He and Ellis were seen taking trains from Middlesbrough to Thornaby and Thirsk where they were spotted donning high visibility vests to inspect bikes.