In an article that shows just how small the world has become with networked technology, the Liverpool Echo reports on a Dallas, Texas man, who reported a crime to local police that he was witnessing on a live web cam that was located in Liverpool, England.

An Internet user in America caught a gang of thieves raiding a Liverpool store red handed as he logged on to webcam sites.

The man was sitting at his computer in Dallas, Texas, when he clicked on to a live camera link for the Mathew Street website.

Expecting to see pictures of the city’s famous Beatles quarter, he was astonished to see three intruders breaking into Blacks outdoor sports store.

He watched as they propped a ladder on the wall outside the store and smashed a window on Button Street to clamber inside.

Despite being 4,590 miles away across the Atlantic, the conscientious American immediately telephoned Merseyside police to report the crime.

Thanks to his diligence, officers were waiting for the crooks and nabbed them as they tried to escape in a getaway car.

Today, Insp Damian Walsh of Merseyside police told the ECHO: “We were amazed when we were informed the person who reported the offence lived in the USA.

“But it showed how vital our camera system is to reduce and prevent offences.”

You can read the entire article @ Nicked on the net.