Two PSNI officers were injured when car thieves rammed their vehicle during a chase in Lisburn, Co Antrim yesterday.
Four men were arrested following the pursuit, which ended with another officer plunging into a river after one of the suspected robbers, even though he was unable to swim.
Police swooped on the thieves as they tried to steal a red Ford Fiesta from outside a leisure centre in Lisburn.
The men drove the car straight at the officers and wounded two of them, a police spokeswoman said. Their injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
A high-speed chase followed before the stolen Fiesta was stopped near a bridge on the Hillsborough Road and three arrests were made.
An off-duty officer had also spotted the theft and followed the fourth man, who dived into the water.
"The policeman showed tremendous courage, particularly since he can't swim, by jumping into the water after the culprit and apprehending him on the other side of the river," the spokeswoman added.
"It is understood a fifth man, who may also have been in the Fiesta, ran off."
PA