Someone Stole LeEco’s High-Tech Mountain Bike Prototype

Executives at the company would not confirm the theft, but an open letter to the thief requesting the bike's return was passed along to The Drive by an eagle-eyed reader, as well as posted on reddit. The company explained in the letter that it has video evidence—possibly from a connected camera in the embedded touch-screen display—that gives them a good indication of the booster's identity. The prototype bike was worth thousands of dollars, according to the company, and being caught with the stolen goods could result in a stiff fine and potential jail time. However, in a bid to remain "friendly" with the perpetrator, LeEco is offering amnesty if the bike is returned to its original location.

Details on the first generation of the company's "smart" mountain bike are hard to come by; however,the second generation of the LeEco "smart mountain bike" was on display at CES 2017, and is equipped a 4-inch, Android-based, touch-screen display that includes 4G connectivity, GPS, Bluetooth, and a security system. The Chinese company plans to introduce the connected bicycle to the U.S. market later this year.

The company wouldn't comment on the incident. However, if the thief is still at large, LeEco is giving him or her fair warning:

To whomever has taken this high-tech prototype without permission:

I am providing you with this info and therefore giving you a second chance before reporting to the police, hopefully you will return this bike to the location it was taken and save yourself a lot of trouble;

Information you should know;

This bike is a high-tech prototype not available on the market and won't be until we recover this lost one, with thousands of hours of research in it, it carries an incredibly high value, that means that if you ever get arrested for this theft, you'd face a very harsh penalty including jail time. This is not a small adventure for you!