A shopkeeper watched as police chased a man through the back of his store last night.

Mohammad Azam, owner of Noor Halal Meat Centre and Newsagent, in Magdalen Road, Cowley, said he saw a man climb over a fence to the rear of his shop at about 5pm yesterday.

He said two police officers were chasing the man, but did not climb over the fence.

A combination of three policemen and three police community support officers subsequently searched the area.

But a police spokesman was not available to confirm why officers were searching for the man.