POLICE were last night accused of overreacting after sending a helicopter to hunt a teenager who kicked a football into a greenhouse window.

The 15-year-old damaged a neighbour’s pane of glass while playing with friends in the back garden of the Crown pub in Chalgrove.

But within 30 minutes the helicopter had been sent from another job to “locate the youth” and two police officers attended the scene.

The incident was logged as criminal damage by police officers, who yesterday defended the use of the helicopter by claiming it was already in the area.

But staff and customers accused the police of a “gross overreaction”.

The manager said she was “gobsmacked” when she saw the police helicopter.

She said: “It was a gross overreaction. It was a complete accident when the young lad miskicked the ball and it hit the greenhouse.

“We always tell the lads to play away from the greenhouse and they were doing that.

“I couldn’t believe it when they sent two officers and the helicopter. Since when did a youngster accidentally kicking a ball into a greenhouse become criminal damage?

“It is ridiculous.”

Pub customer Doug Coles, who lives in the village, said: “It was one of the silliest things I have ever seen.

“I asked one of the cops why the helicopter was there and he told me not to worry myself .

“How can this be a crime? The lad responsible was having a kickabout with kids who could only have been about 10 to 12 years old. They weren’t aiming at the greenhouse.

“It clipped his foot, looped over the fence and hit the greenhouse. He couldn’t do that if he tried.

“Accidents happen in life.”

The owner of the greenhouse called police after the incident, at about 5.40pm on May 8.

Police said one of the officers on the ground asked the helicopter crew to do a sweep of the area to help find the youngster responsible for the damage.

The chopper then returned to RAF Benson, where it had originally been heading.

Police spokesman Rebecca Webber said: “At the time, the force helicopter was flying over Chalgrove, returning from an incident in Stokenchurch.

“On this occasion, the crime had just occurred, therefore two officers were sent to deal with it. Thames Valley Police would not deploy the force helicopter for low level crimes such as criminal damage.

“However if the helicopter is already airborne and in the area they may be asked to assist by officers on the ground, as happened in this case.”

“The youth involved has apologised to the owner of the greenhouse and will pay for the damage.”

The owner declined to comment last night.

Last September police sent the helicopter, at a cost of £350, to track Gareth Pope and his family when they were accused of ‘stealing’ twigs from a nature reserve in Chinnor Hill, near Thame.