A suspected burglar was left red-faced after his attempt to break into a takeaway chicken shop went disastrously wrong.
The man tried to penetrate DFC Chicken in Birmingham by climbing through an extractor-fan shaft at 2am.
But somehow he managed to get himself stuck, and had to wait SEVEN HOURS to be freed by a rescue team.
It was a passer-by who first spotted the crook’s legs protruding from the shaft, and West Midlands Police arrived on the scene at 8.20am.
PC Matthew Willocks, who took a picture of the man’s legs, said: “The extractor unit had been removed and the suspect had climbed into the extractor outlet at around 2am.
“He was completely stuck and couldn’t move at all.”
Thankfully for the man, he didn’t have to wait much longer for his ordeal to come to an end – a crew from nearby Handsworth Fire Station arrived at 9am to free him.
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Continued PC Willocks: “The fire brigade had to come in and use the jaws of life to pull back all the extractor casing to release him.”
Later on, the West Midlands Police response team tweeted PC Willocks’ photo, along with a cautionary message.
It said: “Don’t get stuck if you’re trying to break in. 5 hours later shouting help £triptocustody by all means.”
The picture was later retweeted by the force’s chief constable David Thompson, who remarked: “Most excellent.”
A 45-year-old man from Handsworth was taken to hospital for a check-up before being arrested on suspicion of burglary.
As you might expect, some people on social media found the whole episode hilarious, and the jokey tweets soon started rolling in.
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One person quipped: “Another fine mess, Stanley. Must feel a right turkey!”
Another chortled: “Trying really hard not to laugh.”
And a third joked: “I just slipped, I swear, officer.”