KUCHING: A soldier bit off more than he could chew when he preyed on a holidaying foreign couple.
The incident took place along Kuching Waterfront around 10pm when a 26-year-old woman and her 27-year-old boyfriend — both German police officers from the city of Frankfurt — were taking a stroll towards the city centre.
Unknown to them, a man had been trailing them and he suddenly snatched the woman’s handbag and ran towards an accomplice waiting on a motorcycle.
According to witnesses, what occurred next was totally unexpected as the German man who was well over six feet tall took three big strides and executed a martial arts-like move which saw him pinning the hapless suspect to the ground.
His accomplice sped off. Members of the public came to the aid of the couple and called the police who arrived and took the suspect into custody.
District police chief ACP Mun Kock Keong confirmed the incident when contacted yesterday, adding that the soldier had been remanded for four days to facilitate investigation. Police are tracking down his accomplice.