• Newsfeed
  • Bizarre

Watch a Cell Phone Thief Run Right Into a Police Station in Ill-Advised Escape Plan

1 minute read
Updated: | Originally published: ;

An alleged thief who snatched a woman’s cell phone in China was apprehended about 10 seconds after the act when he ran straight into a police station. Apparently unaware of his surroundings, the man found himself in the precinct’s parking lot while attempting to make a quick getaway.

Surveillance footage posted by of the incident in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, shows the man grabbing the phone out of the woman’s hand on a city sidewalk before taking off in the direction of the station. The woman — who tried to chase the thief but tripped and fell — then enters the compound and points him out to a nearby officer.

Watch the clip here.

More Must-Reads From TIME

Write to Megan McCluskey at megan.mccluskey@time.com