Not just horse play
Tuesday, 18 April, 2017
When PC Emma Hooper was called with her fellow officers to assist a group who had lost their way, she wasn't expecting to use the skills she had learned in the stables.
But the officer was on hand to call on her expertise when three horses were found hoofing around in a high street on an unlikely night out.
Officers were called to St Albans Road, Barnet, at around 01:00hrs on Friday, 3 March after motorists spotted the trio trotting around the road.
Witness said they were running into the road and onto private premises and driveways as they were unfamiliar with their surroundings.
Using the experience she has working with horses outside of the job, PC Hooper enlisted the help of her colleagues to gently coax the animals back to Barnet Police Station with water rescue ropes.
Utilising the rescue lines and patrol cars creating a rolling road block to stop traffic from startling the animals, the horses were safely led to the back yard of the police station in the High Street.
The trio were then taken to stables for safe keeping and returned to their nearby home after officers tracked the owners down. It's not known how the threesome made their great escape.
Inspector Jamie Kay of Barnet police said: "Luckily one of my officers was an equestrian expert who was able to gently coax the horses into makeshift harnesses using our water rescue ropes that we carry.
"Leading horses down a busy high street was certainly an unusual spectacle and goes to show the variety of incidents we deal with. "I would like to remind owners of horses to ensure they are secure in fields or stables to prevent accidents on the roads."
