Re-Cycled : Police Reward Youth After Gritty Fight to Keep His Christmas Bike

Thirteen-year-old Edward Zimmerman of Santa Ana had a right to be angry.

His bicycle had been stolen 3 years ago. Then Sunday, 2 hours after he received a new bike for Christmas, it was stolen out from under him by a suspected burglar fleeing police. Edward had resisted and had chased the bicycle thief, but he got away.

Yet Monday, Edward was smiling and his bike had been replaced. Police officers, impressed by Edward’s spunk, had passed the hat at the police station and appeared in force to surprise him with a new bicycle.

“I’d waited to get him a bicycle until we had a garage we could store it in,” said Shanna Zimmerman, Edward’s mother, adding that the new bicycle was certain to make this Christmas a memorable one for Edward.

Edward said he was exuberant Christmas morning when he saw the “neat, silver-colored bicycle.” He decided to go right away to a nearby school playground with his 11-year-old brother, Shane, and try it out.

“I told my mom that we should write down the serial number of the new bicycle,” Edward said, “but she said, ‘Oh, we’ll do that later. You boys go on out and enjoy yourselves.’ ”

The enjoyment lasted until about 9 a.m.

At that time, Police Sgt. James Bailey, driving his patrol car in the area of the Zimmermans’ apartment, heard a radio report that burglars might be in the neighborhood.

“A homeowner had seen one of the suspects in an apparent burglary attempt, and he got the car’s license number,” Bailey said. “I spotted that car in the 2200 block of North Santiago. It was the same car, and when I checked on the license, I found it was a stolen car.”

Bailey said he arrested a woman and a man later identified as Esther Santos, 27, and Emmanuel Zarate Avila, 32, both of Santa Ana. Both were held on suspicion of possessing stolen property.

But another suspect ran off, and Bailey radioed for help.

Other police in the area fanned out in the direction that the fleeing suspect was heading: the 400 block of East Santa Clara Avenue near Hoover Elementary School where Edward was riding his brand-new Christmas bike.

The brothers had split up at the school so that they could try out another Christmas present--hand-held, two-way radios. Shane went around the corner of the school building on his bike, and Edward sat on his new bike near the outdoor lunch tables.

“Suddenly this guy ran up and saw me and grabbed at my bicycle,” Edward said. “He said, ‘Gimme the bike,’ and I said, ‘No way!’ I tried to ride off, but the guy grabbed the seat of the bicycle. This guy is about 21, and about this time I’m worried that he might be armed.”

Edward said the man pulled the bicycle away from him, got on it and pedaled away rapidly. “I called my brother on my radio, and he came riding over to where I was,” Edward recounted. “I took his bike and started out after the guy who’d ripped off my bike.”

Police soon joined the pursuit. Police Cpl. Denny Pierce said he was in his patrol car about six blocks from Hoover Elementary when he saw Edward riding furiously on a bicycle. Pierce, like Edward, was looking for the fleeing suspect. But the man on Edward’s bicycle eventually managed to elude them both.

Pierce said he stopped and talked to Edward. “He wasn’t crying, but I saw salt on his cheeks and red eyes from where he had been crying about losing that bicycle,” Pierce said. “He was a brave kid to go out after that guy, and I think he’d like to have gotten hold of him.

“What really got to me was when he said he had told his mother that morning about writing down the bicycle serial number.”

Later Christmas morning, Pierce and Bailey and other officers at Santa Ana police headquarters began talking about Edward’s loss.

“We were saying that, hey, here’s a nice kid who was really heartbroken about losing his bicycle,” Officer Ernie Conde said. “One thing led to another, and we started taking up a collection at roll call. And then other people--nurses, dispatchers, people working with us on Christmas Day--reached down and gave money. By the end of the day, we had about $230.”

Conde said South Coast Bicycle Shop also helped out by “giving us a real good deal on a new bicycle.”

By Monday morning, a squad of police were ready to go to Edward’s home with their surprise. At 11:10 a.m., Edward and Shane walked into their apartment and looked bug-eyed at Officers Pierce and Bailey standing inside.

“They’ve come to arrest you,” giggled Shane. Edward glared at him.

Pierce broke the suspense: “Edward, we think we’ve got a nice surprise for you. Will you come outside with us?”

Edward, somewhat bemused, followed Pierce and Bailey to the rear of the apartment complex. Several police cars were parked there, and a cluster of other policemen--Officers Conde, Joe Munoz, Henry Haynes, Mark Bell and Joby Tanksley--stood in formation with broad smiles.

They formed a semi-circle around a bright, new, silver-colored bicycle.

“And here’s a helmet and a T-shirt for you to wear,” Munoz said. “And since we had $26 left over, give this to your mother so she can get bicycle registrations for your bike and your brother’s.”

Edward could do little more than give a wide-eyed smile as the police officers climbed into their cars and headed back on patrol.

“They’re really nice,” Edward said.