RIP: Shane Thomas Cissell, the man who stole my Dakar, took it for a joy ride, and trashed it. Was sentenced to four years in prison (Theft of Means of Transportation, class 3 felony; Misconduct Involving Weapons, class 4 felony; Unlawful Flight from Law Enforcement, class 5 felony). Recently released from prison and killed by another homeowner while committing yet another armed robbery. Did I hate the man? No, absolutely not. Did I learn anything while rebuilding the bike? I've got to say yes. Is the bike now in worse condition? No, not even. These bikes are tough, the parts are available online, and I enjoy motorcycle wrenching.
Dakar 1 Stolen, Trashed, Recovered, Salvaged, Restored
Stolen Motorcycles
2016-09Thieves broke into our garage in the early morning without waking us or the dogs. In hindsight I'm glad that we didn't hear them because, as we learned later, the ring leader was armed with a handgun. (.380 ACP hand gun with a magazine with eight rounds in it, and one magazine with four rounds in it.)
We had two motorcycles, both BMW f650 Dakars. Dakar-1 had 60,000 miles on it, from my various adventures. Dakar-2 was a new-to-us bike, bought a few weeks earlier, same model and year, but pristine and much less mileage (7,700). The new one had taken me four years of actively searching to find. It was a rare bird.
The thieves took both bikes, and a garage-door opener.
Dakar-1Dakar-1 was taken for a joy ride. We had called the police right away, so our local deputies were on the lookout. They caught sight of Dakar-1 and gave chase. The thief eluded the deputies by riding full-bore out into the desert. Other deputies caught sight of it again, but the bike was much faster in the desert than the pursuing vehicles, so the deputies were unable to catch it. But then the police called a Border Patrol helicopter, and that gave chase.
That chase lasted for 20 minutes, with the deputies in pursuit. The bike picked up a length of wire that wrapped around the rear axle. Eventually the rear tire went flat, and soon the tire came off the wheel at high speed and the motorcycle crashed into a heap. According to the helicopter pilot, the guy reached into his pocket, so the pilot radioed a warning to the police of a possible handgun. The police later found the gun hidden nearby.
A few hours later we received a call from the Sheriff's Office saying they have our motorcycle, and the suspect in custody.
It was nice to get my bike back, but unfortunately it was now severely damaged.
The BMW shop assessed the damage at $7,200, so the insurance company totaled the bike.
When I told the guy at the BMW shop that I was buying it back (for $500), in a surprised voice he said it was going to take a lot of work to restore it.
I bought Dakar-1 back from the insurance company as a project bike, and will be working on it during the winter. Even if I get it running, it will still have a Salvage Restored Title, so will have a lesser value in terms of resale. But I figure this will be a good learning experience, removing the engine and tearing it apart.
My main motorcycle had 60,000 miles on it. The insurance salvaged the bike; I bought it back for cheap, and was able to repair it with used ebay parts. So I came out ahead on that one. The other motorcycle was my pride and joy, and was never recovered. But again the insurance covered that one also.
The police caught four suspects:
- Shane Thomas Cissell, DOB 01/23/1988, the person who stole Dakar-1 (the bike which went for the joy ride) was charged with: Theft of Means of Transportation, class 3 felony; Misconduct Involving Weapons, class 4 felony; Unlawful Flight from Law Enforcement, class 5 felony; and Possession of Marijuana. He was sentenced to four years in prison, plus restitution for the economic losses.
- Juan Tepuri, the person who stole the Dakar-2, was sentenced to six months in prison. Dakar-2 was never recovered.
- Lawanna Nabors Dob 9-3-66, the female accomplice driving the car, was sentenced to 5.5 years in prison. July 2017: Jenny and I were summoned to attend her three-day trial in the county court room.
- Anjuli M. Sandoval, DOB 07/20/199 (was not arrested).
https://www.nicb.org/vincheck
Warning!
VIN: WB10186A57ZL46222 has been identified as a vehicle listed in the VINCheck Theft Records.
Please call the NICB at 800.447.6282 ext. 7002, or via e-mail at VINCheck@nicb.org, or contact your local law enforcement agency.
VINCheck Total Loss Record
VIN: WB10186A57ZL46222 has been identified as a vehicle listed in the VINCheck Salvage Records.
Date of loss: 2016-09-08. Cause of loss: Theft.
*****2018-04-22
The tire had come off the wheel, and when the chain came off the rear sprocket, it slammed against the engine with such force that it punched a hole in it.
BMW F650 Dakar
Date of Theft 2016-09-08
Recovered by Sheriffs Dept
Insurance declared a Total loss
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Work done by RJ:
- Used clutch cover from eBay.
- New stator from eBay.
- Took apart and lubed rear suspension, dogbone, repacked bearings.
- Installed new spokes for a replacement rear wheel.
- New rear tire and tube.
- New rear sprocket.
- New chain.
- New rear brake pads.
- New front sprocket.
- New cover for front sprocket.
- New front tire and inner tube.
- Front and rear brake fluid flush.
- New fuel filter.
- New Spark Plugs.
- Emptied and cleaned out fuel tank.
- New fuel.
- Valve check
- 2018-04-17 valve clearances:
Int. R .05 L .05
Ex. R .28 L .29
I had just bought another motorcycle two weeks earlier, same model and year, but pristine and much less mileage (7,700). The thieves stole this bike also. Both bikes had insurance coverage, but the new one had taken me four years of actively searching to find. It was a rare bird. And so far we have no leads on its whereabouts.
****
Our story of Dakar-2 begins on 2016-09-08 at about 5:30 am, with Jenny waking me up with the alarming news that she found the garage door wide open and the two motorcycles gone. We called the police, then looked around the garage for other things missing, and around the front of the house and street for tracks. The only other thing missing was the garage door opener, clipped to the car's visor. Typically we leave car unlocked, due to the low crime rate hereabouts - we thought. We expected the police to arrive at any moment, so we did not venture from the house to start searching for tracks.
A deputy arrived about 40 minutes after we had made the call. He was friendly and helpful, but not in any rush. He seemed intent on finding evidence, not on finding the bike.
There were two sets of tracks leading away from the house. The deputy and I followed the first set, made by Dakar-1. A block later they disappeared, as the thief found my spare key, presumably, started the bike and rode away.
We returned to the house and started following the second set of tracks, made by Dakar-2. Every once in a while the deputy said he was not comfortable having me around. He didn't want me to disturb any tracks. The tracks showed the thief pushing Dakar-2 across a vacant lot, and joined by an accomplice driving an automobile. The car attempted to tow the bike, but the bike ended up being drug across the dirt for 15 feet. Here we found my small bag containing the bike's registration that had fallen out of the tail box. The thief continued to push the bike through more vacant lots, to the next paved road. the tracks then lead along the street, and at one point the deputy stopped at a house to talk with the owner. I was eager to continue following the tracks, but 15 minutes later the deputy came out of the house and suggested, in no uncertain terms, that I was to return home.
The the deputy walked back to our house with me, and after a lengthy talk with us both, he departed.
With the deputy's OK, I started following the cars tracks. They led far away and then circled back and joined the street where we had stopped the search.
Writing this now, I think the deputy could have been stalling for time, allowing the thief to escape. In retrospect I should have heeded my impulse to follow the tracks without waiting for the police. I truly think I could have caught sight of Dakar-2 at some point, as it was being pushed away.
Then I started following the Dakar-2's tracks that were new to me.
By and by, a fellow drove up in a pick-up, introduced himself as Sam, and said he was the one the cop had visited. Turns out he has a security camera aimed at the street, and the cop had stopped by to view his footage. And sure enough, the camera had caught the bike, the thief, and the accomplice's car.
I continued following the tracks of Dakar-2, through an extra large lot, and back on to another paved street. And an another three blocks I lost the tracks.
For the rest of the day I rode my bicycle all around town, looking for more tracks of Dakar-2 and the accomplice's car.
Later that afternoon Jenny received a call from the sheriff, that they had Dakar-1 and wanted us to come identify it.
The next few days I road around town looking for tracks and the suspect car. I found a set of tracks of Dakar-1, clear across town, but by then we had that bike in our possession.
Update:
I now have Dakar-1 in my man-cave (living room) and am working on it, piece by piece. And meanwhile we have been installing a security system on the house.
2016-10-02
Dakar 1 Restoration Notes
The thief wrecked the bike. The Insurance company (Geico) salvaged the bike, salvage value at $4174.09. I bought the bike back for $500. So my net gain was $3674.09.
Geico paid for the tow to IronHorse BMW in Tucson for damage and repair estimate. The BMW shop estimated the repairs at $7,716.82 and detailed a very long list of needed repairs and parts. The shop discarded the front sprocket cover which was trashed. The upper left bolt of the cover had broken away some of the casting. A new bolt will still screw into the hole but only barely.
The chain coming off during the chase damaged the generator cover. The cover was cracked and distorted. It had a high spot on the gasket surface and no longer would hold oil. I bought a new (used) generator cover on ebay for $59.00. I bought a new gasket from Bike Bandit for $22.95.
I cleaned up the electrical ground area just above the generator, and installed the new generator cover. Note: The stator inside the generator cover is a very tight fit. I used a large allen wrench to lever and pry the stator from the cover.
Date of Theft 2016-09-08
Recovered by Pinal Co. Sheriffs Dept same day
Geico Insurance declared Total loss
2018-04-23 Restored Salvaged Title issued
ARIZONA CITY: Shane Thomas Cissell DOB 01/23/1988, 32 of Arizona City died on Feb. 28, 2020. Mr. Cissell was born on Jan. 23, 1988. He learned the construction and masonry trade in his teen years from his father and worked for him, helping to run the family business. He loved being outdoors and enjoyed riding dirt bikes. He had a big heart. (written most likely by his mother)