An off-duty police officer in Stockholm, Sweden, was sunbathing in the park when a man decided they were the perfect targets for a robbery.
Mikaela Kellner, a veteran cop of 11 years, was at Rålambshov park relaxing with her friends, when they were approached by a man pretending to sell magazines to raise money to help homeless people. Kellner and her friends refused, but the man wouldn’t take no for an answer and continued lingering around the area.
“I told my friends to keep an eye on their things. But as soon as he left one of my friends said ‘where did my mobile phone go?'” Kellner said.
The man had used his magazines as cover to bend down and nab the woman’s smartphone on the blanket. He quickly escaped, thinking he was in the clear, but he was soon to learn just how much he had underestimated his target.
“There was no time, so I ran after him, maybe 15 meters or so. One of my friends is also a police officer, so we got hold of him. He tried to get away so we held onto him harder,” she said.
Kellner added, “I just acted on instinct and didn’t think about it so much until after we had him pinned down. When I sat there and looked at our other two friends who are not police officers and realized that it probably looked pretty funny. But I would have stepped in no matter my outfit.”
Soon her fellow officers showed up and officially took the thief to jail.
Kellner’s Instagram post quickly went viral after being reported by the news. She writes in the description:
“A poor homeless guy who you’d have thought would do right for himself. He sells magazines instead of stealing!! When we decline to buy his magazines he takes the opportunity to steal my friends mobile phone!! Very skillfully since he slipped down his magazine over the phone and takes it with ease!! Bad luck for him that he tried to steal from two cops!! My first arrest dressed in bikini during my 11 years as a cop!! Pretty fun and comfortable I have to say! Look out for pickpockets, keep an eye on your valuables!!”