Jewel thief nabbed by staff, public and off-duty cop

(CNS): A 22-year-old man from George Town was charged with theft after he snatched a piece of jewellery last week from a downtown store in the capital and made off on foot. The jewel thief triggered a chase, which began when one of the workers in the jewellery store went after the culprit at around 2:30pm last Tuesday and ended up with a long line of people on his heels. An off-duty police officer first noticed the chase and joined in but the worker and officer were then joined by other members of the public.

The man was eventually apprehended by his line of pursuers on Main Street, where the stolen piece of jewellery was recovered. He was arrested and later charged and appeared in court Friday.

Superintendent Robert Graham noted that even when they are not on official duty police officers remain alert to where they may be needed.

“Incidents like this further demonstrate that even when out of uniform, police officers have a responsibility to respond to any incidents which require their assistance,” he said. “In just the past few weeks, off-duty officers have responded to incidents ranging from domestic occurrences to car thefts, in some cases managing volatile situations in the moments before their colleagues arrive.”

Graham added, “In this particular incident, we are also grateful to members of the public who stepped up to assist, demonstrating not just concern for themselves, but also their community.”

The man who was arrested was subsequently charged with one count of theft. He appeared in court on Friday, 13 April.