Brave members of the public pin the bare-chested man to the ground (Photo: Independent.ie)

THIS is the dramatic moment when a group of brave shoppers came to the rescue of a terrified woman who feared her car was being stolen with her five-week-old baby in the back.

The new mum screamed for help after it appeared that a disturbed man was driving off in her SUV which her infant in a baby seat.

It happened in the car park of the Aldi supermarket in Mulhuddart, west Dublin, at around 12.30pm yesterday when the woman pulled up in her Nissan Pathfinder.

The woman, who is in her 30s, got out of the driver’s seat and was attending to her child when she was approached by the man who allegedly tried to get into the vehicle.

He threw a coat into the front, sparking panic that he was attempting a carjacking.

Fearing that the man was about to drive off with her baby son, the woman approached the suspect, who allegedly knocked her to the ground.

She screamed and a customer in the car park rushed to her aid.

The customer was also allegedly assaulted by the man, who is aged 41 and from West Dublin.

A member of staff from the supermarket raced to the scene and managed to restrain the man.

A number of other customers and staff members helped to restrain the man on the ground until officers from Blanchardstown Garda Station arrived.

Our photo shows shoppers and supermarket staff pinning the man to the ground while they await the gardai.

The woman’s family said it took nearly 50 minutes for officers to respond to the incident.

The man was detained under the Mental Health Act.

Gardai said the man was not arrested for assault or attempted carjacking.

It is understood he had earlier been observed acting “very strangely” in Aldi and had run out of an emergency exit where he immediately came across the woman’s vehicle.

Sources said the man is known to gardai and has been detained under the Mental Health Act in the past.

It is believed he was bare-chested in the supermarket and was “running around” the aisles.

A relative of the woman told the Herald he wanted to pay tribute to “all the people who helped restrain this individual”.

He added: “We are so grateful to the people who came to the rescue.”

The man said the family were concerned that it took so long for gardai to respond.

Herald