A serial thief who gave British police the slip for more than a year was no match for a trio of pensioners who caught him red-handed and restrained him until the cops arrived.

Peter Mueller, 70, was visiting the home of his recently -deceased mother in June when he came across Stephen Ward with a bag full of her jewellery, Metro reports

The fearless Mr Mr Mueller then tackled the thief to the ground and pinned him down with the help of relatives Adly Gorrafa, 81, and Sheila Gorrafa, 78.

"When I saw this person, I was full of adrenaline and so we took him down on the ground," Mr Mueller said.

"I'm 70 years old and the other two people were 78 and 81. With our weight, he had no chance to escape."

A video shot by police when they eventually arrived shows Ward writhing on the ground as the seniors hold him down.

Overpowered and with nowhere to run the thief can only groan as an officer from the Derbyshire Constabulary slaps the cuffs on his wrists.

The trio have seen been dubbed the "three musketeers" by police, who have bestowed a special honour on them usually only reserved for officers.

Chief Constable Mick Creedon said the commendations are not given put lightly.

"We get paid to do our job but for this kind of event to happen it means that the public have put themselves at risk," he said.

"This was a remarkable event and came at some risk but without your help we wouldn't have caught this man."

Mr Mueller, returned to England from Germany to receive the award, while his co-winners live in the US and were unable to attend the ceremony.

Ward has been jailed for 27 months for burglary.