Police officer returns from chasing suspects to find 'pathetic' angry parking note on car

A police officer who left his vehicle to pursue two suspects on foot returned to his car to find an angry parking note on it.

The Hampshire Constabulary officer helped apprehend two suspected offenders following an alleged assault at a pub in Lymington on Saturday evening.

The officer, who was alone, parked his vehicle in a side street off Bridge Road and quickly got out to chase down two men.

The force said neither man complied with the officer and that he was assaulted. The two men were arrested by the officer a short time later with back-up from other police and a dog unit. The officer was not injured.

But having apprehended the suspects, the officer returned to his car to find a note on it scrawled on kitchen roll paper, which read: "Seriously? What's with the parking guys? Ask yourselves!"

Lymington and New Milton Police posted an image of the note on its Facebook page.

It said: "After returning to his vehicle, having pursued the offenders, arrested them and having been assaulted he located the attached note on his car.

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"We appreciate parking is a common issue, however, officers often have to make decisions in the heat of moment and we cannot always explain to residents what is happening and the reasons for our actions.

"I hope the angered resident can understand the reason for having to leave the vehicle where it was."

The officer received a number of messages of support on Facebook.

One user wrote: "You can block my drive any time as can ambulances when you are performing a public service."

Another said: "Probably be a slightly different story if the author of the note was the one who called on your services. Guessing they thought you parked it for fun rather than to actually do the job."

Another Facebook user wrote: "Hopefully the officer is OK and great work getting them detained quickly. Obviously the note writer will comment and apologise for their pathetic message."

Hampshire Constabulary said later that a man had been charged following an alleged assault on a member of staff at the Kings Arms Pub on St Thomas Street in Lymington.

McCauley Thomas Douglas, aged 22, of Darwin Road in Southampton, was charged with two counts of assault and one count of assaulting an emergency worker.

He was released on bail and is due to appear before Southampton Magistrates' Court on 25 August.

A 25-year-old man from Marchwood was also arrested on suspicion of assaulting an emergency worker, but was later released and issued with a conditional caution, police said.