After the bike belonging to his now-deceased son was stolen, Malcolm Eyjolfson thought he would probably never see it again.
He now knows to never say never, after the thief not only returned the bike this week, but also delivered a heartfelt apology for the theft.
Bryce, Malcolm's 11-year-old son, died last October, and the bike, which Bryce had built himself, was a treasured keepsake of his son's memory.
Malcolm and his partner were devastated when the blue custom BMX was stolen out of their southeast Calgary shed in May, reports Metro News.
Police discovered some abandoned bike parts in a Calgary park earlier this month and returned them to the family, reports Global News, but soon after the man responsible for the theft came knocking.
"We opened up the door and there’s this gentleman outside and he had Bryce’s bike," said Malcom.
Bryce’s mom, Kerri Workman, told Global News the man admitted to stripping her son's bike for parts to build a new bike. He wanted to make up for what he did and took time to visit the family's memorial to Bryce, kneeling down to apologize.
"He said, 'I’m sorry little man, I will learn from this.' And it really moved me," said Workman.
"This gentleman had a sincere look on his face,” Malcolm told Metro News. “We got talking to him and he said he’s been a thief all his life. He’s 23 years old. For the last little while he’d been living with guilt and, after reading our story, he said couldn’t handle it any more, and he wanted to own up to his mistakes. He felt ashamed."
Workman told Global News Shane promised to try to turn his life around.
He will not face charges for the theft, and the family has invited him to return to their home if he needs anything.
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