A suspected shoplifter was lucky to escape with his life after wading into the Hogsmill River to evade police.

The unemployed 34-year-old man was lost by detectives after being chased from a shop in Kingston, suspected of trying to sell stolen goods.

By coincidence a detective spotted a man matching his description on the bank of Hogsmill, just yards from the police station, sorting out clothes.

When police approached, the man waded into the Hogsmill and headed towards Charter Quay, until it got too deep and he began swimming.

As crowds watched from the riverside at 7pm on Monday, the chase rapidly turned into a rescue as the man got into deep water in the Thames.

A police spokeswoman said: "Officers tried to coax him away from the river but he jumped in. He travelled towards Charter Quay, at which point officers were warning him of the dangers of the river and were still trying to coax him out, but he did not listen.

"He got to the river and attempted to swim across. At this point officers commandeered the boat as he was about halfway across and they could see he was struggling."

Police commandeered the leisure cruiser just after 7.30pm and enlisted three canoeists to help get him out of the water. After some struggle he was pulled to safety, to cheers from the gathered crowd.

Onlooker Basil Rickard said: "He would almost certainly have drowned had he not been rescued. He was only kept afloat by his bomber jacket.

"At the end of the rescue crowds of supporters gave them all a round of applause."