The use of decoy bikes to catch thieves may be in doubt following a court ruling which said a suspect had been lured into taking a police-monitored bike in Den Bosch.

Judges said the city’s police had placed the decoy in a residential area where bikes are not usually parked and this broke guidelines on their use.

According to the court documents, the suspect was on his way home with groceries when he saw the bike parked next to a grassy area. He took his shopping home and then returned to get the bike.

‘The suspect’s decision to take the bike was created by the police detection methods,’ the court is quoted as saying by the Parool.

The public prosecution department is appealing against the ruling. If upheld, it will mean decoy bikes can only be used if they don’t stand out too much, the Parool said.