AUSTIN (KXAN) – Two Texas men are accused of stealing more than $100,000 of high-end bicycles and parts from the storage unit of seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, according to arrest affidavits.
Police allege Shaun Thompson, 36, and Ethan Harms, 33, burglarized Armstrong’s ExtraSpace Storage Unit sometime between Dec. 10 and 12 and took four Trek road racing bikes with clear markings identifying Armstrong as the owner. A silver and black Cannondale Super Six Evo racing bike and a Ventum GS-1 gravel racing bike were also taken, police said.
Both men have been charged with theft of property between $30,000 and $150,000 – a third-degree felony, according to court records.
Harms and Thompson are suspects in other storage units and apartment burglaries, according to the arrest affidavit. Police said they reviewed the storage unit’s surveillance footage and recognized the suspects from other incidents.
To help value Armstrong’s stolen assets, police went to Armstrong’s 30-year assistant and the CEO of a Houston sports memorabilia company. Police said the longtime assistant had bought, sold and maintained Armstrong’s bicycles for years.
Police and the experts arrived at the following values for Armstrong’s elite hardware:
- 2023 Ventum GS-1 gravel bike, with Shimano GRX Di2 electronic shifting and Zipp carbon wheels was brand new and valued at $8,500, the affidavit states.
- 2016 Cannondale Super Six EVO road bike with SRAM ETAP electronic shifting and Zipp carbon wheels and a custom paint job was valued at $10,500, the affidavit states.
- 2010 Trek Madone road bike with SRAM Red mechanical shifting and Bontrager wheels. The bike was personally used by Armstrong for road races and triathlons from 2010-2012. The bike would retail for $10,000, but Armstrong’s assistant said a bike with the same hardware had sold for $50,000 at auction, according to the arrest affidavit.
- 200-2002 Trek S500 frame with Shimano Dura Ace components was valued at $6,500.
- A “custom one-off” MyBike mountain bike frame with a custom paint job built specifically for Armstrong in Europe. Armstrong’s assistant stated the frame could bring about $30,000 “on the low end” at auction.
- Trek Madone 6.9 Red carbon road frame used by Armstong’s Trek-Livestrong development team and ridden by Ryan Baumann valued at $500.
The combined value of the stolen bikes and parts was $105,800, according to the affidavit. It’s unclear if authorities have recovered any of the bikes or parts.
Third-degree felonies can bring a prison sentence of two to 10 years.
Armstrong admitted to doping during his Tour de France wins, and the titles were ultimately stripped from him.