An off-duty police officer nabbed three car thieves in the act of trying to steal cars. 

Pc Alex Willmot, of Brentwood police station, was driving home from work when he saw three men trying door handles on cars on private driveways.

After calling for back up, officers arrived and arrested the men who were found hiding behind a vehicle.

Inspector Tom Mitchell praised the quick-thinking of his off-duty officer, saying: "Seamless team work helped deliver this fast response to an incident that had the potential to affect a great number of vehicle owners.

"Thanks to the vigilance and quick thinking of Pc Willmot we were able to make the arrests in a short time frame.”

Stolen goods and gloves, believed to have been used in the course of the incident, were found near to where the men were located.