A duo of young car thieves were thwarted in their attempt to evade police capture on Wednesday night when some wild boar got in their way. Police had to rescue one of the suspects from a herd of wild boar defending their young.

Wild boar have had some bad press recently in Germany with increasing numbers of the animals venturing into cities in search of food. However, late on Wednesday night the feral creatures made something of a contribution to law and order by helping police round up some crime suspects.

The incident happened when police in the eastern village of Schönberg spotted two 18-year-olds in a sport utility vehicle that had been reported stolen three days previously and gave chase. The two car thieves then rammed the patrol car before swerving into a corn field to escape. According to police in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the delinquent duo then got stuck in a piece of forest and decided to flee by foot.

The police officers managed to nab one of the suspects immediately but the other was surrounded by a herd of wild boar intent on protecting their young. The police freed the young man from his perilous situation and promptly arrested him.