SPOKANE, WA (CNN/KREM) -- There is one less tree in Spokane, Washington, all thanks to a thief who evidently really wanted someone else's bike.
In front of the Madison apartments in downtown Spokane a tree stood firm. Tuesday night, Benjamin Allen stayed the night with a friend at the apartments because he had been drinking.
Allen locked his bike to the tree using a kryptonite metal u-lock. The next morning he got a rude awakening. He says, "She goes down the stairs to plug the meter and she comes up all upset. And I go down to find this tree torn to bits with no bike and I was just in total shock."
Someone appeared to cut a branch at a time, then chop the tree in half and raise the bike over the long slender stump.
Allen says the bike is how he got around during the winter. he hopes someone recognizes his bike: a black and red specialized Hardrock 29er valued at more than $500.
Allen suspects the lock still dangles on the frame but he has the key. He says, "It was a bad choice to lock it up to a tree because trees aren't reliable. Downtown is not reliable. I should have brought it inside. Hindsight is 20/20, but such audacity. Why would you rip a tree apart?"