A THIEF who stole two motocross bikes from a warehouse and was chased by a police helicopter and patrol cars, has been jailed for a year.

Brendon Ricketts, 23, used an angle grinder to break through shutters of a warehouse on Pipps Hill industrial estate, Basildon, last year.

His accomplice, Bradley Thomas, 22, then used a van to open the shutters. Once inside the pair stole the two motocross bikes worth £5,500.

A lorry driver who was parked 150 yards away witnessed the break in and phoned police.

The van, driven by Thomas, headed towards the A13 chased by a police car which had been called to the scene.

Other patrol cars soon joined the chase, while a police helicopter monitored the crooks from above. The thieves eventually gave in, pulling up on the hard shoulder of the A13, where they were arrested.

Summing up, Judge Mitchell said: “You are lucky you only used the van to leverage open the shutters. If the robbery was deemed a ram-raid you could have expected a much longer sentence.

“It was still a serious crime that you nearly got away with, had it not been for the prompt action of a passer-by and the police.”

Ricketts, of Nightingale Crescent, Romford, was sentenced to 12 months in prison. Thomas, of Kingsbridge Road, Romford, was sentenced to eight months behind bars at an earlier hearing.