DOZENS of bystanders watched as a wanted man was arrested after a two-hour police chase.

Undercover officers swarmed the Highercroft area as part of a ‘chase and containment’ operation after reported sightings of a teenager being hunted for vehicle crime.

The force helicopter was scrambled to help catch the man.

After he was initially spotted and reported to police around 2.30pm, he ‘went to ground’, with police believing he may have been moving around several back gardens.

Then as the suspect was flushed out from a nearby ginnel he was seen sprinting across a grassed area in front of the Spar on Manxman Road, around 4pm.

In dramatic scenes, a police dog and a plain-clothed officer closed in, with the suspect just about outrunning them until uniformed police pulled up in an unmarked car and swooped to arrest him.

Traffic came to a halt in both directions on Manxman Road and bystanders watched as the man was handcuffed and bundled into a blue Vauxhall Vectra.

Last night an 18-year-old local man was in custody being held on suspicion of an auto-crime offence in the Blackburn area.

Police confirmed he had been wanted for a ‘couple of weeks’.

Sgt Tim McDermott said: “The suspect was sighted, patrols were sent to the area. He surfaced, there was a chase and he was arrested.

“It was thanks to inquiries on the back of excellent help from the community that led us to the arrest.”

One local resident, who did not want to be named, said: “There have been undercover police all over the estate. It must have been a serious operation to have the helicopter out.

“We’ve all been talking about it and then to see him being chased by police dogs and officers was quite frightening.”

Police confirmed that the man was wanted on suspicion of aggravated vehicle crime.