Two men, aged 27 and 28, who were caught driving a stolen car in Nicosia and crashed into a police car during a chase were arrested in the early morning on Saturday.

The vehicle was reported stolen by its owner, a 57-year-old man, who said the theft took place around 9.15pm on Friday, while the car was parked and locked in a parking space in the district.

During investigations, police located the stolen car driving on the streets in Nicosia around 1.30am on Saturday. Officers followed it on Prodromou avenue, when the driver of the car started driving in reverse to avoid the police check.

As a result, the car crashed into a vehicle of a 20-year-old man that was waiting at a stop sign.

Then, the car stopped at the entrance of a house on Angelos Vlachou street. A police car stopped behind it to prevent the driver from escaping, however the car reversed repeatedly, crashing into the patrol car which in turn hit another police car that was at the scene.

The driver of the car attempted to escape but was arrested by the officers who also arrested the passenger.

Two pocket knives and a folding club were found during a search in the vehicle