At least nine high-end bicycles were stolen from garages in Palo Alto and Sunnyvale by a minor, according to a newly obtained 20-page Palo Alto police criminal report.
Two February 2025 break-ins set the pattern: Hong Quan lost two custom road bikes worth about $15,000, and about two weeks later Mark Hlady found a Trek Domane SL6 and a Specialized Stumpjumper missing.
Police initially treated the thefts as routine property crimes—Quan said an officer suggested little would happen, and the first report ended with the recommendation "Case closed."
The report indicates that assumption was wrong: the bikes and suspect were ultimately tracked down through victim-led detective work rather than enterprising police investigation.
California juvenile-protection laws keep the suspect unnamed, while the report clarifies parts of the theft spree but leaves open why Quan's newly built bikes were specifically targeted.