Colorado’s e-bike incentive program was created to make electric bicycles more affordable by offering an instant discount at participating retailers. In some communities, shoppers could combine the state’s incentive with local rebates, reducing the cost of a new e-bike by hundreds of dollars or, in some cases, almost nothing out of pocket.
For many buyers, Bear Trail Bikes looked like one of the best bargains in the state. The company advertised free and heavily discounted e-bikes through the program, attracting a wave of customers eager to take advantage of the limited-time incentives.
Then the promised six- to 12-week wait stretched into months for many customers. Complaints began piling up, buyers started comparing notes online, local news outlets launched investigations, and lawsuits followed as questions mounted about what was happening behind the scenes.
Now the story has taken another dramatic turn. An FBI civil forfeiture notice identifies more than $521,000 in property associated with Bear Trail Bikes owner Takuma Keita Owuo-Hagood, including a 2021 Lamborghini Huracán, a 2025 Mercedes-Benz EQB 250+, a 2024 Range Rover, and more than $116,000 held in bank accounts.
From Bargain to Backlash
Bear Trail Bikes promoted its offer through Colorado’s e-bike tax credit, allowing customers to apply the state incentive at checkout. Some buyers paid only sales tax, while others paid more to upgrade to higher-priced models.
As deliveries slipped beyond the advertised six- to 12-week timeline, formal complaints began to mount. The Better Business Bureau shows Bear Trail Bikes had 35 complaints closed over the past 12 months. Many customers described similar experiences, including lengthy delivery delays, refund disputes and difficulty contacting the company. Some said they waited months for bicycles that never arrived, struggled to obtain refunds, or were unable to reach the company by phone or email. Many of the most recent complaints are listed by the BBB as unanswered.
Reviews on the company’s Google Business Profile showed a similar divide. Some reviewers said they received their bikes and were satisfied with the deal, while many newer reviews described months-long waits, unanswered calls and emails, disconnected phone service and unresolved orders.
Frustrated customers also began comparing their experiences on Reddit, where some said they eventually received bikes. In contrast, others described unanswered calls, refund requests, disconnected phone numbers, closed storefronts and missed delivery estimates.
The growing number of complaints drew the attention of consumer investigator Steve Staeger. His 9NEWS investigation documented numerous complaints, including one customer who remained without her bike 22 weeks after placing her order.
Bear Trail Bikes owner Takuma Owuo-Hagood told the station that delayed state payments were preventing the company from fulfilling orders. Similar explanations appeared in responses to some Better Business Bureau complaints, where the company cited inventory constraints, fulfillment timelines and state reimbursement processing.
However, the Colorado Energy Office told 9NEWS that participating retailers may claim the state tax credit only after an eligible bicycle has been delivered to a customer.
Other retailers have also reported reimbursement delays. CBS Colorado reported that one unrelated bike shop said it was waiting for more than $300,000 from completed sales, suggesting reimbursement delays existed elsewhere in the program even as state officials disputed Bear Trail Bikes’ explanation for its undelivered orders.
Taken together, the BBB complaints, Google reviews, Reddit discussions, television investigations and civil lawsuits showed that the dispute had grown far beyond a handful of unhappy customers.
The Story Kept Getting More Complicated
As customer complaints mounted, the legal disputes grew. BusinessDen reported that Bear Trail Bikes’ former owners raised concerns about business records after selling the Rifle shop to Owuo-Hagood in 2025 and later sought a restraining order. A former landlord also sued over allegations involving unpaid rent and damage to a Lakewood storefront.
The Denver Post reported that Bear Trail Bikes also faces a $6,000 small claims lawsuit alleging the business engaged in a pattern of bait-and-switch advertising and failed to deliver purchased bicycles within a reasonable time.
The newspaper also reported that the former owners became concerned about unusually high sales volumes and duplicate sales entries connected to Colorado’s e-bike rebate program shortly after selling the business.
The Denver Post also reported that Owuo-Hagood does not appear to face any active criminal charges.
As customers searched Owuo-Hagood’s name, the story took another unexpected turn. A 2010 New York Times report detailed how he surfaced near American forces in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan after spending more than three months in the country.
Owuo-Hagood said he had been abducted and escaped, while villagers and Taliban members gave the newspaper a conflicting account. Western officials said his motivations remained uncertain.
The episode has no known connection to Bear Trail Bikes or the current forfeiture action, but it added another unusual chapter to an already chaotic story.
The FBI Notice Leaves Major Questions Unanswered
The FBI notice identifies a 2021 Lamborghini Huracán valued at $258,500, a 2025 Mercedes-Benz EQB 250+, a 2024 Range Rover and two JPMorgan Chase accounts as property subject to civil forfeiture. The Lamborghini alone accounts for nearly half of the property’s total listed value.
The filing does not explain what transactions investigators believe took place, why the vehicles and accounts were targeted or whether any criminal charges are being pursued.
Bear Trail Bikes’ website remained online at the time of publication and stated that new free-bike orders had been paused while previous orders were fulfilled. However, the company’s Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn pages also appeared to have been removed or were no longer publicly accessible at the time of publication.
For now, the allegations raised in customer complaints and civil lawsuits remain unproven. The forfeiture notice does not identify any criminal charges against Owuo-Hagood, and it remains unclear whether any criminal charges will ultimately be filed in connection with the matter.
Civil forfeiture is a civil proceeding, not a criminal conviction. It does not establish that Owuo-Hagood, Bear Trail Bikes, or another associated business committed a criminal offense, and interested parties may challenge the seizure and seek judicial review.