The owner of a £2,000 Brompton and brave members of the public confronted a thief as he used an angle grinder to steal a padlocked bike from Brighton seafront.
When witnesses told him to stop, George Jhugroo, 24, threatened to attack them with his angle grinder.
He was chased as he rode off from outside the Holiday Inn hotel towards Norfolk Square and ended up in a scrap.
The owner of the Brompton, Jim Mortimore, got his bike back and Jhugroo ended up injured and having to go to hospital.
At the same time, witnesses called the police who found the battered bike thief at the Royal Sussex County Hospital, in Brighton, where he was arrested.
Sussex Police praised the have-a-go heroes who stepped in, while urging people in similar situations to dial 999 and put their own safety first.
In court, Jhugroo, from Mitcham, in south London, admitted robbery and having an angle grinder as a weapon. He was jailed for almost three years by Recorder Carolyn Scott.
The force said: “A man has been jailed after stealing a bike and making threats with an angle grinder in Brighton.
“George Jhugroo, 24, of Brookfields Avenue, in Mitcham, was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court on Thursday 23 May following a guilty plea last month.
“On Sunday 28 May 2023, the victim left his bike locked up in King’s Road, near Cavendish Place, while he was on the lower seafront promenade.
“A short while later, the victim looked up to King’s Road to see sparks and a man, now known to be Jhugroo, using an angle grinder to remove the lock from his bike.
“Members of the public gathered around Jhugroo, requesting he stop, and in response he threatened to assault them with the angle grinder.
“After removing the lock, Jhugroo rode off on the bike towards Norfolk Square.
“Following the robbery, Jhugroo sustained an injury during an altercation and the bike was later recovered.
“The same day, Jhugroo attended the Royal Sussex County Hospital for treatment where he was intercepted by police and arrested in relation to the matter.
“He was then bailed with strict conditions pending further inquiries.
An angle grinder to the nadds always brings this kind of behaviour to a rapid end. Big Doris in cell five is awaiting young Jhugrooooooooooo😳
Call the police for them not to turn up! Good old civil justice from the public! Need more of it
Sussex Police couldn’t catch a cold. The only reason they were able to arrest this guy was because he was handed to them on a plate.