The work representing Ernest Rutherford, pioneer of physics and 1908 Nobel Prize winner, will be able to come back on its two feet.

A man suspected of stealing a statue in Brightwater, New Zealand, on Friday evening was arrested by a police officer two days later.

The officer had to dive into the freezing water of a river to apprehend the suspect.

During the robbery, surveillance cameras captured footage of the thief fleeing on a bicycle with the heavy metal statue.

If you are a fan of any ONE of these things



- Ernest Rutherford


- Proving you can transport heavy objects on a bicycle


- Kindly police officers holding small children recently rescued from kidnappers



then you will love this story.

https://t.co/At0TFzB2Id pic.twitter.com/egMx5Piuqd

— Richard Easther (@REasther) August 8, 2022

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“I enjoyed a good hot shower”

Two days later, the 35-year-old suspect jumped into the Wai-iti River in the dead of winter to evade police.

Officer Jamie White therefore dived into the icy waters in turn to arrest him.

“Despite all his efforts to flee (…), I swam after him and managed to apprehend him”, explained the policeman in a press release.

“I can say that I enjoyed a nice hot shower after that!

", he added.

The alleged thief was due to appear in court on Monday.

The statue, found in good condition in a house, must be put back on its base at the Rutherford memorial in Brightwater.

Lord Rutherford (1871-1937) was a central figure in the study of radioactivity and led the exploration of nuclear physics.

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