Padawan acting police chief Lim Jaw Shyong said the victim, a woman in her 50s, was walking along the road when two men riding a red motorcycle approached her and grabbed her handbag, The Borneo Post reported.

“The victim tried to keep her bag from being snatched by the suspects, and at the same time, a car driven by a member of the public stopped in front of the suspects’ motorcycle and managed to apprehend one of them.

“However, the other suspect managed to escape,” Lim was quoted as saying.

He said the victim sustained minor injuries during the struggle.

The second suspect meanwhile was detained at around 5pm yesterday at the old Kuching Airport Road.

“The suspect was arrested by a team from the Padawan crime investigation department, and he admitted to being the pillion rider of the motorcycle used in the robbery,” Lim said, adding that the suspect has a history of criminal offences related to drugs.

Both suspects, aged 20 and 30, will be remanded at the Kuching court today for further investigation.

“With the arrest of the two suspects, the case has been solved and the police are conducting further investigations on their involvement in other cases with the same modus operandi,” Lim said.