The rider of a scrambler bike was in a "Mexican standoff" with police on Crosby beach.
Crowds gathered to watch and film the chaos unfold shortly after 7pm on Easter Monday as two police helicopters were seen circling overhead. The biker was seen riding up and down the beach "doing wheelies" as officers and coastguard and rescue volunteers gathered, with the incident continuing into the evening.
It came after police were called to reports of a group of men riding off road bikes on Mariners Road, Liverpool. They spotted the bikes on Queens Road and arrested two men on suspicion of theft of a motor vehicle and assisting an offender.
READ MORE : Three men arrested after scrambler bike causes hours of chaos on Crosby beach
A 4x4 BMW motor vehicle and an off-road scrambler bike were also seized by officers. Merseyside Police said the man rode onto the beach near Crosby Marine Lake following a police pursuit and stopped the vehicle.
People at the scene took to social media to comment on the incident and the amount of emergency services that were deployed.
One man tweeted: "A bit of a Mexican standoff last evening down on Crosby Beach! 2 x helicopters, 11 police cars, 2 x Police Drones and numerous unmarked cars for a lad on a Dirt Bike! Oh and Hoylake Lifeboats Hovercraft!"
Another man tweeted: "Kid at Crosby beach got about half of Merseyside police. Coast guards, two drones, a hovercraft and at least three separate helicopters going for about six hrs now. He’s not going to get up for school at this rate."
ECHO reader Stephanie Patricia said: "We were down there 4 hours and left at 9pm and he was still having a stand off."
Antonia Boyham said: "It's already cost almost 10 grand for the bizzie helicopter to be out that long, he knows he is nicked when he stops so he has been doing laps. His mates even brought him petrol and tipped the bike up twice while we was there, what a waste of all our emergency services time dealing with this fool!"
Merseyside Police said a containment was put in place around the beach as a precaution and the National Police Air Service (NPAS) helicopter was at the scene while officers engaged with the man. The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) confirmed to the ECHO that RNLI volunteers were "assisting with other search and rescue agencies".
A police spokesperson said: "We would like to thank local residents and businesses for their patience as we deal with this incident."
