Melbourne cycling track tacker close to being identified

Police have released images of a man believed to be responsible for putting tacks on Melbourne cycling tracks and causing years of punctures.

For more than two years, metal tacks have regular been found on Yarra Boulevard in Kew, a popular cycling route known as the Boulie.

Victoria Police, who have been investigating the matter since January 2015, announced a breakthrough on Thursday.

According to a police statement, detectives from the Boroondara crime investigation unit had investigated reports that a man drove the length of the Yarra Boulevard several times on 1 December 2015, passing by a puncture repair station.

“Just after 5.30am, the man stopped at the puncture repair station and got out of the vehicle. He then tore the fencing off the post and removed the bike pump and plastic boxes,” police media officer Natalie Webster said.

The man was reportedly white and in his mid 30s, possibly with a dark beard. He was also shoeless, despite apparent proximity to so much pointy metal.

“Police believe he may live locally as he was dressed in only a white singlet, shorts and no shoes,” Webster said.

The police have now released a series of stills from CCTV footage allegedly showing the Boulie tacker and his car, a 2015 Volkswagen Golf, in an attempt to track him down.

The tacks are one centimetre long, deadly to bicycle tyres and scattered along the length of the 13km tack. They have prompted a number of campaigns by cyclists to raise awareness of the problem and identify the culprit.

The sabotage has also generated a grassroots detective movement that monitored anti-cycling comments on news stories and social media for clues to the tacker’s identity.