The man was restrained by the group

A 25-year-old man told how he and around nine others sat on a drunken looter for an hour-and-a-half after he drove to a supermarket to steal alcohol.

The hero, who wishes only to be known as Dean, arrived at Sainsbury’s in Station Approach, Hayes at around 11pm on Monday night where he said he had just missed a group attack the shop with fire extinguishers.

As he and a few other people, including an off-duty policeman, were standing in front of the smashed windows to protect the shop, the drunken man pulled up and walked into the store where he tried to take some alcohol.

The group restrained the man who was thrashing about and had become violent.

Dean said: “Myself and a few others were waiting to secure the shop. This bloke pulled up completely drunk. He walked past us and started filling up a bag.

“Myself and the off-duty police officer tackled him and a group of us sat on him.

“He was shouting at us. We had to sit like that for an hour-and-a-half. The off duty policeman sent his brother to get his radio from home so we were in contact with the police.

“They knew we had an officer with us and we were restraining a violent man but they just couldn’t get to us any sooner. It was very dramatic.”

Dean had been in Waterloo for work and had driven across south-east London through Lewisham, New Cross, Catford and Downham as pockets of unrest had erupted around him.

He said: “It was mental. I can’t even describe what it was like. It wasn’t just the looters. There were thousands of people on the streets.”

Dean said he would have no hesitation in protecting his local community again. He added: “We are not vigilantes but a group of us are getting together and we will protect our area. We will be cable tying them and waiting for officers to arrive. The police need as much help as they can get.”