Video: Policeman borrows bike to chase down bike thief

It takes a thief to catch a thief, they say – so presumably to catch a bike thief, you’d be well advised to steal a bike. That’s pretty much the approach adopted by the Dutch policeman in this video, as we see him borrow a bike from a passer-by and then chase down a suspect on it.

The video was uploaded to the Rotterdam-Rijnmond Police Department’s Facebook page this week. We see two officers who are on the trail of a pair of bike thieves arrive in their squad car. They get out and while one of the suspects is caught almost straight away, the other gets away. Fortunately, a passer-by lends one of the policemen his bike, allowing him to continue his search and successfully track the suspect down.

A spokesperson for the police said: "Bicycle theft unfortunately too often takes place. In the absence of witnesses and/or CCTV it can be very difficult to find the perpetrator."

In this particular case, police were able to arrest a 22-year-old man who has been given 24 hours of community service for stealing a bike, while a 19-year-old man is due to be sentenced at a later date.

There are few vehicles that are off limits to Dutch police once they’re on the tail of a bike thief. In 2012 Breukelen police requisitioned a tractor to catch three bike thieves who had escaped on foot into a field.