--- title: Dutch Police Arrested a Bird for Its Part in a Robbery description: A Dutch bird was spotted at the scene of the crime, and the police evidently had a lot of fun doling out a punishment. canonical: https://time.com/5689057/bird-arrest/ author: Rachel E. Greenspan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-09-30T14:34:20.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:00:26.270Z og:title: Dutch Police Arrested a Bird for Its Part in a Robbery og:description: The bird has not yet made a plea in the case og:url: https://time.com/5689057/bird-arrest/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte6a52ea7710415a9/698a039f011682805c97e4bc/dutch-police-arrest-bird.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3500 og:image:height: 1969 og:image:alt: Dutch Police Arrested a Bird for Its Part in a Robbery og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Dutch Police Arrested a Bird for Its Part in a Robbery twitter:description: The bird has not yet made a plea in the case twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte6a52ea7710415a9/698a039f011682805c97e4bc/dutch-police-arrest-bird.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Police Arrested a Sneaky Bird for Its Part in a Robbery > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME The Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition The Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The day's top headlines, curated by TIME editors. The Brief brings TIME's perspective to the day's most important stories, helping readers understand not just what is happening, but why it matters. It combines original reporting and analysis with the best of TIME, spanning politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. 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It curates the day's top headlines with TIME's reporting and analysis across politics, world affairs, business, health and culture. It is free to join at time.com/newsletters. #### How do I sign up for The Brief? The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=0f863c07-425d-4e77-b00f-3ca57fc64c18&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1) by [Rachel E. Greenspan](https://time.com/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Sep 30, 2019 2:34 PM UTC  Utrecht, The Netherlands - June 30, 2011: Close-up of the logo of the Dutch police taken from the police station on the Briljantlaan in Utrecht Utrecht, The Netherlands - June 30, 2011: Close-up of the logo of the Dutch police taken from the police station on the Briljantlaan in Utrecht Getty Images by [Rachel E. Greenspan](https://time.com/author/rachel-e-greenspan/) ## Rachel E. Greenspan Sep 30, 2019 2:34 PM UTC A Dutch [bird](https://time.com/5681255/north-america-bird-population/) was spotted at the scene of the crime, and the police evidently had a lot of fun doling out a punishment. Police in Utrecht, in the Netherlands, found the “sneaky witness” when arresting a shoplifting subject. Politie Utrecht shared a picture of the bird on their [Instagram](https://time.com/5670210/mylo-the-cat-interview/) page last week. “We recently arrested a suspect for a shoplifting,” the caption said. “During the arrest we found a sneaky witness with feathers and beak on the suspect’s shoulder.” The police allegedly gave the bird [bread](https://time.com/longform/women-urban-farmers/) and water to keep it satiated in the police station. Responsible! When initially reporting on the bird’s arrest, news organization RTV Utrecht blurred out the bird’s eyes to keep his identity private. Also responsible! > [](https://twitter.com/CampbellxEmma/status/1178400639208116224) The bird has not yet made a plea in the case, but with all this media attention, it will likely make a move in the coming days. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5689057/bird-arrest/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5689057/bird-arrest/"},"headline":"Police Arrested a Sneaky Bird for Its Part in a Robbery","datePublished":"2019-09-30T14:34:20.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:00:26.270Z","description":"The bird has not yet made a plea in the case","url":"https://time.com/5689057/bird-arrest/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Bizarre","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte6a52ea7710415a9/698a039f011682805c97e4bc/dutch-police-arrest-bird.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rachel E. 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