Police Crack Down On Illegal ATVs In Philadelphia
By Steve Tawa
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - Philadelphia Police are cracking down on illegal 'all-terrain-vehicles' and dirt bikes in the city. In one day, police confiscated 26 ATVs and 11 dirt bikes in various neighborhoods.
ATVs are made for rural land and properties, not city streets and parks, according to Deputy Police Commissioner Thomas Wright.
"Although they can be registered, they're not allowed to be operated on a city highway."
Although no arrests have been made, he says ATV riders were terrorizing folks, jumping curbs and sidewalks, recklessly rampaging through Fairmount Park and Cobbs Creek - even doing wheelies on I-95.
"We're not going to chase an ATV unsafely. We utilize good police tactics and best practices."
Anthony Peabody of Pedricktown, New Jersey, near Swedesboro, went to the Philadelphia Police Major Crimes Unit garage to recover one of three ATV's that were stolen from his land.
"Took them right off our trailer, unstrapped them, and they were gone."
Police say none of the confiscated vehicles was registered or had proper tags.
