'Batman' brings in suspect to Bradford police

A man dressed as the caped crusader Batman has handed over a wanted man at a Bradford police station before disappearing into the night.

Police said the costumed crime-fighter marched the 27-year-old man into Trafalgar House Police Station, in the early hours of 25 February.

The man was charged with handling stolen goods and fraud offences.

Police said: "The person who brought the man in was dressed in a full Batman outfit. His identity remains unknown."

Despite speculation on social media the arrested man could know the mysterious crime-fighter, West Yorkshire Police said: "We do not know the identity of the man dressed as Batman and do not know if he is friends with the man who was handed in."

The suspect will appear before Bradford magistrates on Friday, police said.

A fancy dress store owner believes she sold the costume to the masked man.

Kathryn Sutcliffe, of Kirkgate Market's The Joke Shop, said she sold a Batman outfit to a man in his 20s a couple of days before the incident.

She said: "Usually they want the Dark Knight costume but he wanted this one. He wanted the one with the muscly chest as well. It's like the one Del Boy wears in Only Fools and Horses."

Mrs Sutcliffe said the man had a local accent and was tall with curly black hair.

She may be one of the few people who knows the Bradford Batman's name, as he paid with a credit card and she has the receipt, but she said she would keep his identity a secret.

The neighbourhood police team for the Buttershaw area of Bradford, wrote about the incident on its Facebook page.

They said: "Last week we had a very strange occurrence at the police station when a male wanted for an offence on our area was 'escorted' into our helpdesk at Trafalgar House by Batman.

"Batman came into the helpdesk, stated to the staff 'I've caught this one for you' and then promptly vanished into the night to fight crime and the fear of crime in Bradford.

The officers added: "This post is meant as a bit of a light-hearted news."

One comment posted in the name of the neighbourhood police team even said: "We know the male set this up himself."