Shoplifter stopped by police in river jailed

A shoplifter who was apprehended by a police officer in a river after he attempted to escape has been jailed for 24 weeks.

Nottinghamshire Police said Simon Child fled from officers after stealing steaks from Marks and Spencer in Mansfield on 11 August.

He was pursued by police as he ran through the River Maun under a bridge in the direction of Titchfield Park and was eventually detained "after a brief struggle", the force added.

Child, 46 and of no fixed abode, admitted theft and assaulting a police officer, and was jailed following a hearing at Nottingham Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.

Sgt Catherine Darby, from Nottinghamshire Police's Mansfield town centre policing team, said: "This was a great bit of work by all the officers involved, particularly the officer who entered the water.

"He used his extensive local knowledge to catch up with and detain a suspect attempting a highly unusual getaway.

"He may have got wet and been assaulted for his troubles, but he provided an exceptional service to the people of Mansfield."

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