Batman and other comic book characters chase down purse thief

If you were to become the victim of a crime, who would be better to have around than Batman or another superhero? That’s exactly what happened to one woman in Norwich when her purse was snatched recently. Not only Batman, but also Mister Fantastic and Poison Ivy helped to retrieve the stolen item.

The scene was straight out of a superhero movie, with Batman even scaling a wall to finally get the handbag back. Best of all, part of the incident was captured on video and uploaded to TikTok for all to enjoy.

A group of party-goers helped the woman get her purse back

25-year-old Sonni Mason was dressed up as Batman for a friend’s party he was attending that evening, when he saw the purse taken from the woman after what looked like an argument in a line for a nightclub. He immediately took off after the thief and was quickly joined by other comic book characters.

The heroes needed help, though, so they flagged down a nearby group of cops about the theft before continuing after the alleged criminal. Unfortunately, once they caught up to them, the purse was gone. However, a tip led them to find that the thief had thrown the bag on top of a wall outside of Norwich Cathedral.

@thetimes

A partygoer dressed as Batman chased down a thief and retrieved a stolen handbag on Saturday night. Sonni Mason, 25, a café worker from London, was out for a friend’s fancy dress birthday party when he witnessed a man grab a woman’s bag from the queue outside a bar in Queen Street. Dressed in the superhero’s signature black cape and mask, he made chase followed by his friends, dressed as Mister Fantastic from the Fantastic Four, Poison Ivy from Batman, and Cyclops from the X-Men. Not all heroes wear capes, but one protecting the streets of Norwich certainly does *FOR NEWS PURPOSES* #news #batman #norwich #superhero #crime

♬ original sound – The Times and Sunday Times – The Times and Sunday Times

It took a while to get the bag down, as several attempts failed, but eventually Mason scaled the wall and tossed it to its owner, who was thrilled to have it back. Even better, nothing was missing from the purse.

According to The Guardian, a spokesperson for Norfolk Police confirmed the events in a statement: “Officers on routine night-time economy patrols in Norwich were approached by a member of the public, on Saturday September 19, who requested help to find a missing bag. Following inquiries at the scene, the bag was located with all of its contents intact and subsequently returned to its owner.”

Mason went viral for his efforts

Unsurprisingly, Mason went viral after the video was shared online and had a lot of excellent words for others. He reportedly said, “There’s not a lot of good things going on in the world. At the time, being able to get someone’s bag back, [making] sure she could go home safe and see[ing] someone happy again felt good. Everyone needs a little bit of that in them. A little bit of Batman. You have to be brave, bold and kind […] I didn’t want to jump off rooftops or beat people up. I just want to make sure everyone else is all right. Sincerely, that’s what [Batman] is about. He’s a protector.”

He also stated that he hoped the video would inspire others to help someone out if they seem uncomfortable on a night out or if they’d been mugged.

However, the evening did have a downside: there were reportedly no arrests that night. Hopefully, though, the alleged purse thief will think twice next time before attempting the same thing again.

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]