Remember that video from earlier this week? The one with the R1 hitting 299 km/h out near Victoria, B.C?
When we told you about it, we warned you not to try this sort of thing yourself, because the police catch up quickly once these things hit YouTube.
Turns out, we were right.
Once police on Vancouver Island asked for assistance in identifying the speeder, the population couldn’t trip over their public spirit fast enough; the police received several tips as early as Tuesday, and by yesterday, had identified the suspected speeder.
There’s only one problem; the suspect only had a learner’s motorcycle driver’s licence (but he does have 27 driving infractions and five licence suspensions, CTV says), and police haven’t yet been able to prove he was aboard the bike for the speed spree. The motorcycle (a 2006 blue Yamaha R1) is registered to the suspect’s mother. It was uninsured, police say.
However, police are pretty confident they have the right bike, saying they matched the scratches on the bike’s cockpit to ones seen in the YouTube video – so instead of putting their suspect in the slammer, they’re doing the next best thing. They fined the suspect’s mother $1,449, and seized the suspected motorcycle, saying someone has to take responsibility for this; if the alleged rider won’t, then the registered owner will have to take the fall.
While it seems unfair to fine somebody who wasn’t likely riding the bike when the video was shot, the fact is, the law allows them to do just that. The B.C. civil forfeitures law will also likely allow the police to confiscate the bike for keeps and re-sell it. Keep your eyes open – there might be a sweet deal on an R1 at a future B.C. police auction, if you don’t mind the bike’s dubious history.
[…] that YouTube video, from that guy, who took that bike to that incredibly high […]
Do you not have innocent until proven guilty there in Canada? Alright then, do you not have tons of youngsters there who remember the good old days of “borrowing” their parents Packard or pickup and racing it on nice straight stretch on a Friday night? lol…..shhhhhh…..here’s to the little Ricky Carmichael spirit in all of us.
That doesn’t make it right. He’ll get his day in court. Either way, no one can condone operating any motor vehicle at 299 kph (180 mph) on a public road. He put other people’s lives at risk, as well as his own, with his antics. Then, to add insult to injury, he lets his mommy take the rap for him and never says a word. By the way, the bike was in mom’s name so he could keep riding. He didn’t steal anything, it was his.
The video I seen didnt look any more dangerous than the dozens of people I see on a daily basis looking down at their laps while texting.
So the cops can seize private property and lay fines based on “similar scratches” to what appeared on an Internet video? Geez, you’d think they’d at least need a license number, a description of the rider or something a little more concrete. Where are the civil liberties lawyers who want to make a name for themselves on this one? Hey, nobody condones this kind of crap but are we headed towards a brown-shirt state where you’re encouraged to rat out your neighbor?
 Yes , bring on the brown shirts and yes rat out your neighbor . When you’re dealing with a guy that has 27 previous driving violations and five licence suspensions and still endangers the public by riding like a complete moron. I say off with his head or at least his throttle hand. This is a case where this guy obviously hasn’t learned a damn thing through the soft courts system in Canada.
Excuse me but there is a lot of defference between siezing someones property on vague evidence and busting teh guy who may or may not have been riding it Two totally seperate issues here. Whats next? You get a fine for loud pipes while the bike is sitting on the driveway  because they probably sound like the ones they heard in the distance two days ago
 Nobody likes a tattle-tail.
Nobody likes to hear about kids getting hurt in stupid accidents.
Nobody wants bad things to happen; that is, nobody who is thinking clearly.
There is no easy answer to be found in this situation, but I think it was a necessary evil to let the police use whatever legal methods they have available to slow this young fella down.
Sounds like mommy supports her little boy and encourages his idiocy ( registering the bike in her name so he could ride it ). Too bad mommy should have taken the belt to him a long time ago !