Marion County family searching for stolen bikes

OCALA, Fla. - A mother from Marion County says her kids’ bikes were stolen on Tuesday.

Tracie March says her family, which includes her six children, love riding bikes together.

“We’re just a normal family,” March said. “We worked really hard to even get eight bicycles. It’s just really upsetting because we made it like our little family thing. It’s like our thing that we do and now we’re just stalled.”

The kids left the bikes next to a tree at the front of their community, like so many other kids in the neighborhood do each day. When they came back, the bikes were gone.

“It’s a very well-known spot,” neighbor Amberly Powell said. “They hide them down there by the tree and they look for them when they come off the school bus.”

News of the thefts traveled quickly in the community.

Neighbors said no one usually touches the bikes when they’re there.

“You feel used and violated when someone does this,” Powell said. “It’s horrible.”

The Marion County Sheriff's is investigating the thefts.

March is hoping whoever took the bikes will bring them back, so that the family can go back to riding their bikes together.

“What kind of place are you in where you think stealing from a child, let alone six children?” March said. “Is this somehow going to make your day better?”

The March family is working with its neighbors to see if they can get a bike rack for this area so the kids can start locking up their bikes when they go to school.

If you know anything about the thefts, you’re asked to contact the Marion County Sheriff’s Office