Mr Pike, who suffers from a genetic and degenerative central nervous system disease, was travelling along the footpath on Windsor Road, Northmead about 2pm on Tuesday, June 23 when his four-wheel scooter broke down.

``I was on my way to get something to eat when it broke down,'' a distressed Mr Pike said.

Unable to restart the machine and without a mobile phone to call for help, Mr Pike managed to push the scooter off the footpath and parked it in a driveway in front of a house.

With no one at home at the time to assist him, Mr Pike made his way to a nearby local gymnasium, Plus Fitness, where he phoned a friend to help him retrieve the scooter.

But some time during the hour that elapsed before Dave and his friend were able to return to the driveway, the scooter disappeared, apparently stolen.

``I was devastated. [The scooter] was my independence, now I don't have it and I'll have to rely on other people to take me somewhere,'' Mr Pike said.

``It's such a low act, I cannot believe anyone would do it and I don't understand why they would do it.''

The $3000 scooter, a Mobi-Care LS409, was paid for partly by Mr Pike with help from his friends at River City Care, a branch of the River City Church.

River City Care's Lynton Taylor, a friend of Mr Pike, appealed for this newspaper's help to try to secure the scooter's return.

``It is appalling to think that anyone could think of stealing a scooter that obviously belongs to a handicapped person,'' Mr Taylor said.