A police motorcyclist crashed during a chase which led to the arrest of four men.

The incident started when a car left a petrol station in Eastbourne yesterday without the driver paying.

A Volvo car was spotted but failed to stop for a motorcycle officer at Beddingham, near Lewes.

The vehicle was followed along the A27 and through Falmer and Woodingdean into Rottingdean.

The police motorcyclist came off his bike in an accident on the Falmer Road but suffered only minor cuts and bruises.

Other traffic officers and the force helicopter took up the chase.

Three men were seen getting out of the Volvo in Rottingdean before the car sped away.

It was dumped nearby and the helicopter crew directed officers on the ground to a man hiding in a garden.

Traffic officers picked up another suspect on the Undercliff Walk at Rottingdean and the helicopter crew helped with the arrest of two others in gardens of houses in the village.

Four men, all from Liverpool, are helping with police inquiries.