What could be worse than a car theft? Well, catching the thief in the act may trigger some tragic consequences, as hunted criminals are usually willing to do anything to get away.

However, sometimes these incidents have happy endings, as is the following case from the UK. Residents from Swansea trapped a thief inside the car he was trying to steal after he cynically asked the owner’s neighbor to move his car so that he could drive off in the Smart Roadster

The neighbor did not know who Matthew Draper was and went to ask the mother of the car’s owner whether she recognized him. Realizing he’s a thief, residents held the doors of the car shut so that he could not exit until the police arrived. Draper reportedly threatened them with a screwdriver and spit at Tanya Miles, the Smart’s owner, as she arrived at the scene.

Finally, police came and arrested the thief, who, according to The Telegraph, is a known drug addict.

The man who filmed the incident on his phone, Dimitris Legakis, wrote the following on his YouTube account: “Thief Matthew Mark Draper, trapped by local residents in Swansea, inside the car he was trying to steal until the police arrive to arrest him. He was jailed for four months by a judge in Swansea Crown Court, and another 28 months for other offences.”

You can watch the surreal scene in the video after the break.

By Dan Mihalascu

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