Earlier today, a group of thieves broke into 3T‘s factory in Bergamo, Italy, and made off with 20 of the display and demo bikes, including a custom painted Exploro by the late Dario Pegoretti. The thieves busted through a meter thick wall in the side of the building, and made their way through to the office area to get the bikes. Police responded quickly, but the thieves had already left.
While I’d imagine most of the bike stolen were probably rather common builds of 3T’s bikes, the Pegoretti Exploro will be hard to hide. The bright red frame and colorful custom paint will be easy to recognize. Hopefully, the thieves will not irreparably modify the bike as a way to try and pass it off as something else.
Below is the statement from 3T, and they ask if you see any suspicious 3T frames, especially the Pegoretti, please contact 3T and the local authorities to help catch the thieves. We will keep you posted as more details emerge.
Unique Exploro painted by our late friend Dario Pegoretti among the stolen bikes.
Sad day in our office in Bergamo. This morning at 6.00am 6-8 thieves entered our office and robbed all bikes. Â The thieves drilled a hole through a 1 meter thick wall to enter our warehouse.
After that they moved quickly to break the warehouse door, cut the fence surrounding our office and move more than 20 bikes into their van. The police arrived within 10 minutes, but they already had left.
Saddest of all, one of the stolen bikes is an Exploro painted by our dear friend Dario Pegoretti, who died a few months ago. He painted this bike as a gift to us for launching our first bike ever.
Everyone at 3T is in shock that this happened, and the level of professionalism of the thieves.
If any of you see any of our bikes offered on the internet, at stores or in any other way, and it looks suspicious, please let us know. And keep a particularly eye on the Pegoretti bike. Â Your help is greatly appreciated!
Based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Scott joined Bike World News as the Cyclocross Editor in 2012 before taking over as Tech Editor in 2016. He has also worked as a photographer for various pro teams and shoot races along the east coast of the US, including the 2012 US MTB National Championships, 2013 UCI Cyclocross World Championships, and 2016 UCI Road World Championships. Scott has a passion for performance and technology, with 35 years of riding and mechanic experience. He also enjoys soccer, running, teaching group fitness classes, and is the founder of Lancaster Beard Company.
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