Moment M&S worker is mowed down while trying to stop suspected thief on an e-bike
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This is the moment a Marks & Spencer shopworker was knocked to the ground by a suspected thief as he tried to escape on an e-bike.
The man had ridden into the branch on the bike before picking up around £200 worth of children's clothes and trying to leave without paying.
A shopworker who tried to block the exit was then knocked to the ground as he tried to flee.
He was dragged along the ground but managed to stop the rider, who was brought back into the shop – along with the stock.
Police said a struggle then ensued and he managed to get away.
Officers who were called to the incident at the M&S in Giltbrook at around 11.45am later arrested a 36-year-old man on suspicion of robbery in Eastwood.
The shopworker suffered minor injuries.
PC Luke Cutts, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: 'Having spotted an apparent shop theft in progress, staff went to confront a suspect at the exit.
An M&S worker was mowed down in Nottinghamshire while trying to stop a suspected thief on an e-bike
The staff member suffered minor injuries from the collision
The man had ridden in on the bike and taken around £200-worth of children's clothing before trying to leave without paying
'Rather than stop, the individual instead rode an e-bike directly into and over the staff member, causing minor injuries as a result.
'That use of violence and aggression meant that, when we located a suspect, he was arrested for robbery, as opposed to shop theft.
'It really should go without saying but nobody should ever be subjected to something like this when they're just trying to do their job.
'This type of behaviour will never be viewed as anything other than completely unacceptable, so we're pleased to have made this arrest.'
It comes as figures show a dip in levels of recorded shoplifting was offset by a jump in business robberies, thought to reflect increasingly violent retail thefts in 'Wild West Britain'.
Official data shows recorded robbery surged 10 per cent year-on-year to 88,282 – its highest level since before the pandemic.
Robberies of businesses soared 67 per cent to more than 31,000 – the highest on record. Robbery of personal property dipped 7 per cent to some 57,000 incidents.
The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) said the rise in robbery may reflect the violence used by shoplifters, leading to a shift in how the crime is recorded by police.
Recorded shoplifting fell 2 per cent to 519,516 from a near-peak the previous year.
The ACS said: 'The reason for the marked increase in robberies is likely due to a change in the way some offences are now recorded as robberies that previously would have been counted as shoplifting.'
Chief executive Ed Woodall added: 'We are extremely concerned about the changing nature of theft against retailers. Offenders are becoming more confident, more brazen and ultimately more violent in their crimes.'
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