Heroic off-duty officer stops knife-wielding robber from stealing phones

PC Nick Fox brought the teenage boy to the ground after he tried to flee (Picture: Met Police)

This is the moment an off-duty officer tackles a would-be phone robber armed with a knife.

PC Nick Fox sprang into action after spotting two youths acting suspiciously on bikes in Kingsland Road, east London.

He suspected they were looking for phones to snatch and shouted at them. One of the males produced a knife and waved it at him.

The officer alerted on-duty officers and then saw the youths looking like they were about to target a lone female victim.

PC Fox shouted to alert the woman before one of the males got off his bike and approached the officer, drawing a knife from his bag.

But he then made off on his bike after back-up arrived, but the police officer was hot on his heels.

A member of the public then assisted officers by pushing the boy from his bicycle, allowing PC Fox to move in and detain the suspect.

He was arrested and taken into custody.

PC Nick Fox bravely came to the aid of a woman in Hackney (Picture: Met Police)

The knife seized from the scene of the attempted theft (Picture: Met Police)

A knife and three stolen mobile phones were found following the incident on April 23.

The 17-year-old appeared at Stratford Magistrates Court on Friday, June 9, where he was found guilty of assault, possession of an offensive weapon, and one count of threatening a person with a bladed article.

He had pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery at an earlier hearing.

He was bailed for sentencing on a date to be confirmed in July.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Conway said: ‘This is a fine example of bravery and excellent teamwork; an off-duty officer going above and beyond the call of duty, swiftly and ably assisted by his on-duty colleagues who rapidly responded to help the safe detention of the suspect.

‘I am immensely proud of their efforts to help keep members of the public safe, but I’m not surprised.

‘My officers and staff are out there every day, working tirelessly for Londoners. Then they go home, get up and do it all over again. This shows that even outside work they are putting the safety of the public first.

‘I’d also like to thank the woman who helped stop the male, but left the scene before we could speak to her. Her action showed real courage and a selfless determination to assist the police preventing harm.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

PC Nick Fox sprang into action after spotting two youths acting suspiciously on bikes in Kingsland Road, east London.