A 43-year-old father in Fredericia says he made two civilian arrests in a single day after his 15-year-old son was robbed of a scooter in the town center. The two suspects were convicted at Kolding District Court on August 7, 2026.
Anders Christiansen, a public school teacher who also runs the company Nordisk Media, described the episode to Avisen Danmark. According to his account, his son was standing outside Føtex City in Fredericia with his scooter on May 8, 2026.
A 20-year-old man and a younger companion asked to borrow the scooter, Christiansen said. When the boy refused, he was threatened with a beating, pushed and kicked on the shin. The son left the area, and the scooter disappeared shortly afterward.
Christiansen was at a meeting in Middelfart when his son called. He told the boy to go to the police station, and officers sent a patrol to look for the two suspects. He and his wife then met their son on the pedestrian street.
The couple spotted two men matching the description walking from the harbor toward Prinsessegade. Christiansen said he approached them against his wife’s advice and told them to stay put until police arrived. The 20-year-old denied taking the scooter, then began walking away and started running.
Christiansen, who is 203 centimeters tall and has played basketball for years, ran after him into the clothing shop Miami/S.M. Andersen. A shop assistant tripped the man, and Christiansen held him on the floor. Police entered the shop about 50 seconds later, by his account.
On the drive home, his son saw the younger suspect near Nørreport. Christiansen stopped the car, called police through his son and told the teenager to wait. The younger suspect said the scooter was in the Føtex parking cellar, where Christiansen later found it with a damaged front shield.
Both were convicted on August 7, 2026, at Kolding District Court for the robbery and other offenses. The 20-year-old was also convicted over a separate incident on May 26, 2026, in which he kicked and hit a man lying down at a bus stop in Sjællandsgade.
Police urge caution
Arno Rindahl Petersen, vice chief inspector at Sydøstjyllands Politi, declined to comment on the specific case. He said people should consider the risk before making a civilian arrest, and that acting as a good witness is often wiser. He estimated that the district sees very few civilian arrests each year and could not recall two on the same day.
Section 755 of the Danish Administration of Justice Act allows anyone to detain a person caught during, or in immediate connection with, a publicly prosecutable offense. The detained person must be handed over to police as soon as possible. As stated by Anklagemyndigheden, an arrest must be necessary and proportional, and a detainee must be brought before a judge within 24 hours if police seek continued detention.
