(Georgia)- An Athens man’s roommate tracked down his stolen motor scooter Sunday night on the west side of town and police arrested a 26-year-old man for possessing stolen property.

The roommate told police at about 8 p.m. Sunday that he saw a truck hauling a scooter that looked like the 2008 Yamaha Zuma that got stolen Thursday from a home on Northview Drive.

The roommate followed the truck to Sycamore Drive off West Broad Street, where police found the truck, checked the scooter’s registration number and confirmed it was one of two that were stolen from the same home.

Police talked with the owner of the truck, Alexander E. Hernandez, of 200 Sycamore Drive, and arrested him on a charge of theft by receiving stolen property.

The Zuma, valued at $2,500, is owned by a Ruth Drive man. It and a second scooter, valued at $1,200, were taken between 12:30 and 9 a.m. Thursday from a home on Northview Drive.

SOURCE: ONLINEATHENS.COM

In mid-December, Gainesville police were back at the site of a deadly wreck that killed a University of Florida student riding a scooter about two weeks earlier.

On Dec. 2, a car ran into the back of a scooter carrying Michael R. VanWagner. The smaller vehicle was behind a pickup stopped at 17th Street and University Avenue. A 1993 Lincoln Town Car, driven by Monica Renee Toliver, 40, of Gainesville, crashed into the rear of the scooter with the impact forcing both the scooter and the pickup into the intersection, according to reports.

No charges have been filed against Toliver in connection with the crash. The case remains open, said Sgt. Joe Raulerson, who supervises the police department’s traffic safety unit.

Police have yet to understand what caused Toliver to first hit a Gainesville Regional Utilities truck in the area of 18th Street and University Avenue, then straddle the sidewalk before continuing east on the road toward the fatal collision.

VanWagner died from his injuries later in the week. Police said he was not wearing a helmet.

Under state law, riders of motorcycles and scooters with an engine over 50 cc or with more than two brake horsepower and able to travel more than 30 mph must wear an approved Florida Department of Transportation helmet unless they’re over 21 and meet specific insurance requirements of a minimum of $10,000 insurance coverage, according to University of Florida Police.

The day of the crash police said Toliver showed no obvious signs of impairment. She did submit to having her blood drawn for analysis and was allowed to leave the crash site.

Raulerson said it could take several months before the law enforcement agency receives the results of Toliver’s blood test from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

The blood drawn can be used to see if a motorist was under the influence of alcohol or if there were any drugs in the person’s system.

Raulerson also said the agency had no new information about the vehicle Toliver had been driving except it was not registered to her but to someone at the same Gainesville address as the local woman.

A check of Toliver’s driving record in Florida shows two violations, one for unlawful speeding in 2003 and another for failing to yield to an emergency vehicle in 2006.

Until the blood test results come back, Raulerson said police have been gathering other information about the wreck, such as their work in mid-December when officers were laser mapping the crash site.

SOURCE: THE GAINESVILLE SUN

Colin Tilson smiles mischievously when I ask him how fast it goes.

“I built one once with an 80cc engine that would wheelie at 60mph, with a top speed of 70,” he said. “You could smoke up the road on that one.”

Production models of the aero engineer-turned-inventor’s latest project - given the thumbs-up by Oscar-winning Dustin Hoffman and 1960s model Twiggy - nip around town at a more sedate 30mph on their 10in wheels.

Not too shabby for a road-legal folding scooter you can fit in your car boot, carry in a holdall and travel 130 miles or more on a gallon of petrol.

Mr Tilson’s two-wheeled runabouts - aka Street Cheaters - are set to hit the road next summer after 12 years of development.

An off-road version is already on the market in America, where his customers include police, beach patrols and other emergency services, who use the tiny bikes to scoot through traffic.

Heacham-based Mr Tilson, who has invested more than £1m in setting up production in Taiwan, is confident the machines will prove a hit with everyone from city commuters to caravanners looking for a portable runabout.

The folding carbon fibre and steel machines, which weigh around 22kg, are powered by tiny 50cc engines.

“It’s a short-journey vehicle, or SJV as we call them,” he said. “It’s not meant to go from Heacham to King’s Lynn, it’s a small vehicle that gets you around.

“It’s ideal for campers, caravanners and motor-homers, it’s great for people who want to make a short journey in the city. You can keep it in the office.”

Former Gaywood Park pupil Mr Tilson, now 53, became a freelance engineer in the aero industry after starting out as an electrician.

The scooters came about 12 years ago, when his son Dean - then aged 10 - asked for a similar machine which was then on the market.

Instead of bowing to pestering for some peace and quiet, Mr Tilson decided he could build something better from off-cuts of aircraft materials.

City types could soon save the machine’s £899 price tag by avoiding the £8-a-day congestion charge, which many expect to spread to other cities from Central London.

But despite its name, you don’t get to stick two fingers up to the taxman as well as Boris Johnson. “You still have to pay road tax of £15 a year,” said Mr Tilson. “And there’s a one-off £38 fee to register them with the DVLA.”

Riders also need to wear a crash helmet.

And avoid pulling wheelies.

SOURCE: Chris Bishop@EDP24