By Leslie Albrecht
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER WEST SIDE — Spring means flowers are in bloom and motorcycles are going missing on the Upper West Side, police say.
Three motorcycles have been stolen from Central Park West over the last month, said Capt. Christopher McCormack of the 20th Precinct at a Community Council meeting earlier this week.
"This is the time of year, in April, when we start seeing more and more getting stolen," McCormack said.
Police have been putting stickers on motorcycles to warn bikers to be extra vigilant about not leaving motorcycles parked for long periods, McCormack said.
On April 11, thieves made off with a black 2006 Yamaha parked near West 65th Street and Central Park West, according to police records. On April 17, the target was a 2011 red Honda parked near the American Museum of Natural History.
Four days later, a 2009 red Suzuki was lifted from Central Park West and West 81st Street.
Of 33 vehicle thefts reported in the 20th Precinct last year, about 85 percent were motorcycles, McCormack said.
Despite the recent boom in boosted motorcycles, crime overall is down in the 20th Precinct, which covers West 59th Street to West 86th Street, from Central Park to the Hudson River.
Property theft — such as laptops stolen from Starbucks and purses stolen from bars — is the area's most common crime, accounting for about 70 percent of crimes reported in the 20th Precinct last year.
