A businessman has condemned police after they failed to turn up in time to arrest a thief who stole a laptop computer from his shop.

Johnathan Belbin claims he chased the culprit through the streets until the man went to ground in a flat.

Mr Belbin borrowed a mobile phone from a passer-by to dial 999, but he claimed it was more than 20 minutes before police turned up to the scene, in Selby - and, by then, the suspect had fled.

Mr Belbin said: "I gave the Newby Wiske control room the address where the man was holed up and they said they would get someone down straight away."

After nothing happened, he rang again 15 minutes later and got through to a control room in York, to be told there was no record of his call.

"It was nearly 25 minutes before the police van arrived, by which time the thief had escaped through a window. I chased after him again, but gave it up as a bad job."

He said: "It is really frustrating that, after chasing this man all over town, the police cannot turn up in time to arrest him."

But a North Yorkshire Police spokesman said officers were immediately dispatched to the scene, but were unable to find Mr Belbin.

He said: "They had to make a search of the area to locate him; there was also a mix-up over his second phone call and he has received an apology.

"Inquiries are continuing to find the offender."