A stolen motorbike was found with black tape covering op one of the numbers.
Police in Burnley were out on foot patrol in Trinity when they noticed 'suspicious activity' surrounding a motorbike.
They ran the number plates through the system which came back as invalid.
Upon further inspection, officers noticed that black tape had been stuck over one of the numbers.
Once police have conducted another round of checks with the full plate, it showed as being stolen and has now been recovered.
PC Sophie Bourne and PCSO Sharon Clark, who spotted the bike, said: "Whilst out on foot patrol in the area of Trinity today, we noticed suspicious activity surrounding a motorbike.
"Upon carrying out the appropriate checks, the vehicle registration displayed on the motorbike came back as invalid.
"Upon further investigation of the motorbike, a piece of black tape had been stuck over one of the numbers.
"We carried out checks on the correct registration number and were alerted that it was in fact stolen. The motorbike has now been recovered."
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