Keepsakes missing from Bethesda ghost bike memorial honoring teen
Some items that were placed at a ghost bike memorial in Bethesda, Maryland, in honor of a teen who was fatally struck while cycling, have gone missing, according to neighbors.
The ghost bike leans against a utility pole along the southbound side of Old Georgetown Road near Beech Avenue. It’s draped by a chain holding it in place that’s also spray-painted white.
The bike was placed there in memory of 17-year-old Jacob Cassell, a rising junior at Winston Churchill High School, who was struck near the intersection during the summer.
Cassell had been riding his bike on the sidewalk when he fell into the road and was struck by an SUV the evening of July 31.
He died the next morning.
“A cross with Jake’s name on it and a number of sentimental keepsakes left in memory of Jake by his friends are among the missing items,” according to a Nextdoor community post attributed to Montgomery County Police Cmdr. Sean Gagen.
The post is asking that the items be returned to the memorial “no questions asked.”
Anyone with information is asked to call Montgomery County police’s Second District Station at 240-773-6700.