The shoplifter screams in shock as three towering French policemen speed towards him, grab his arms and legs, lift him up and drag him away—on rollerblades.

　　Within seconds, rollerblading officer Stephane Ajuelos has handcuffed a colleague posing as a thief.

　　This is all part of the training programme for the Paris police’s latest weapon in the fight against crime—a 50-strong rollerblading police squad.

　　“Criminals are totally taken aback,”said Ajuelos.“Some don’t even try to run away when they see us. We’re tall on our blades, and very fast. They know they don't have a chance to escape.”

　　Aujuelos, 29, is one of 50 officers who have passed the tough entry test to join Paris’s rollerblading police squad.

　　Officers on rollerblades have been spotted in places like Amsterdam, London, Miami Beach and Stockholm, but they can’t beat the French capital's speedy force, said the unit’s creator Marc Bella, a 42-year-old former speed-skating champion.

　　 The unit initially numbered eight and its main job was to monitor the weekly processions of rollerbladers, which can number in the thousands, through the streets of Paris.

　　The rollerblading officers, who patrol the streets of Paris in blue uniforms, wearing knee and elbow pads and crash helmets, provoke mixed reactions among Parisians.

　　“It makes the officers seem more young and fun,”said Alain Croullebois, 37, adding that French police in general have become much stricter since the government made it easier for officers to hand out fines.


　　巴黎“旱冰小分队”竟吓坏了盗贼

　　在巴黎，一名“窃贼”看到警察踩着滚轴溜冰鞋冲过来捉住他时，吓呆了。只用了几秒时间，“溜冰警察”就为这个贼人扣上了手铐。原来这是巴黎警察最近的反罪恶训练的内容之一。巴黎警方近日挑选了50名精壮警察参加训练，组建了“旱冰小分队”。其中一名成员说：“犯人见到我们就被完全吓住了。他们有的甚至看见了我们也不敢跑了。我们穿着旱冰鞋时显得特别高大，而且跑得快，他们知道自己没机会逃脱了。”

　　巴黎是继阿姆斯特丹、伦敦、迈阿密和斯德哥尔摩后，第五个派“溜冰警察”上街巡逻的城市，不过，当中速度最快的应该算是巴黎了，因为他们的创办人是前速滑冠军呢！

　　上街参加巡逻的“溜冰警察”身穿蓝色制服，膝盖和手肘都戴上保护装备，头戴钢盔，十分威猛。巴黎市民的反应也很好，一位市民说：“这让警官们看上去更加年青和有趣。”