Two thieves were arrested in Tooting Bec last week after a dramatic police dog chase.

Four men dumped a stolen car in Topsham Road before jumping over a fence and scrambling through gardens.

Police sent dogs after them and two surrendered themselves in Brudenell Road, while the others fled.

A witness said: “The police were running around like headless chickens. They didn’t have a police car so they sent for the dogs.

“The dogs were really quiet, but then 10 minutes later we heard this man shouting, ‘Get the dog off me, I’ll come out’.”

The incident happened about 1am last Wednesday after the men stole a green VW Polo from Croydon.

Officers even talked of calling a helicopter, but in the end it was not used.

The two men, including the driver of the car, were bailed and the car was towed away.