Moment brazen thief takes off on disability nurse's bike after stealing it from outside Co-op - and sticking his tongue out as she chased him down

Published: 20:18, 18 August 2026 | Updated: 20:19, 18 August 2026 A brazen thief allegedly stole a nurse's bicycle in broad daylight – while wearing flip-flops – on a London high street and gleefully stuck his tongue out at her as she tried to chase him. Kelly Regan, a disability nurse, had left her bike outside the Co-op near Chiswick station in west London when the thief approached and rode it away. Despite Ms Regan screaming at him and begging him to stop, she said the thief smiled at her as he pedalled the navy Momentum electric bike, worth more than £1,000, away. Ms Regan, 30, tried to chase the thief but lost her flip-flops and suffered blisters on her feet caused by the scorching pavement. The man was chased by a father and son, who videoed the man from their car, but he was able to escape. Their video showed the thief, described as around 6ft 2in and of athletic build, trying to cover his face as he cycled in flip-flops to evade the duo chasing him. Ms Regan said the Co-op told her it had a high-quality image of the thief's face from its CCTV but could not share it with her. The nurse, originally from Co. Mayo, Ireland, was told victims cannot view such evidence and it can only be seen by police. The man allegedly stole Kelly Regan's bike from outside a shop in Chiswick, west London, before smiling at her and fleeing He tried to cover his face as he cycled away but was chased by a father and son who followed him in their car after seeing him take the bike Ms Regan said she was told the Co-op had clear footage of the man but that police had not yet asked for the video Kelly Regan, a disability nurse, had her electric bike stolen in Chiswick by a thief wearing flip-flops Your browser does not support iframes. But police had not been to the shop to collect the footage and Ms Regan was told there would be a five-day period for the Metropolitan Police to decide whether it would assign an officer to her case. A Met spokesman has since said officers had received the CCTV from the shop. Ms Regan told the Daily Mail: 'You work hard for your money and then this happens.' She said she had been going into the Co-op to buy a bottle of water during the heatwave and had just entered the shop when the man approached her bike. 'Within one minute of stepping away from my bike, the man came along and took it in front of me,' she said. 'I screamed: "Please don't, please don't." And he smiled at me, which was weird. 'I ran down the road and lost my flip-flops and the cement was really hot so I ended up with blisters at the bottom of my feet but I had screamed so loud that the people from the groomers' and the vet and the Co-op all came out.  'A dad and son jumped in their Jeep and chased him. They were unsuccessful in getting him but they did manage to get that video.' After chasing the thief for around 300m, Ms Regan's feet were bloodied and blistered so she was bandaged by the vet, who collected her belongings – which had fallen out of her bag during the chase – and charged her phone. The nurse, pictured on her previous e-bike which was also stolen from Chiswick last year, chased the thief for around 300m and suffered blisters on her feet 'I found myself in a heap, bawling and crying. I realised that I couldn't catch him and I looked on the ground; there was just blood on my feet. 'The vets, they were so kind, they collected all my belongings that were all over the street - I could've been robbed again if the wrong person came across my bag.' An Airtag tracking device she had placed in the bike was found that evening discarded in a road nearby. Ms Regan said it was the second time she had seen an electric bike of hers stolen after a similar theft in March last year. In that case her bike was stolen from outside a yoga studio in Chiswick when a thief cut her lock off while she was inside. But she said police had not asked for the CCTV then and the theft remained unsolved. 'I felt quite alone in the whole thing,' the nurse, who has lived in west London for two years, told the Mail. 'I love my electric bikes but clearly you can't have nice things. 'I'm definitely looking over my shoulder more and more. I had just got over the last incident and I'm finding it really hard not to blame myself and think: maybe I should've had a cheaper bike for commuting; on that day did I really need to take that bike? Ms Regan's bike was stolen from outside the Co-op branch opposite Chiswick station 'I'm not the type of person who thinks that way but I'm not as trusting and I felt much safer when I first moved to Chiswick.' A Met spokesman said the force's enquiries were 'ongoing' and officers had accessed the shop's CCTV though no arrests had yet been made. They added: 'We know thefts like this are a concern to people both locally, in the Chiswick area and across London. 'As part of our New Met for London plan, we are continuing to crack down on neighbourhood crimes that matter most to those who live, work in and visit the capital. Since last April, theft across London has fallen by 21 per cent.' The Co-op was contacted for comment.