A 6ft-long monitor lizard that climbed a tree to raid a garden pond and catch koi carp was caught feasting on one of the prized pets.

Sarut Boonchan, 29, spotted the creature wandering inside the property where he was doing electrical wiring repair in Saraburi, central Thailand on November 21.

The worker heard a plop in the water at a nearby pond and found the lizard with one of the expensive ornamental fish in its mouth.

He immediately chased away reptile, which released the huge fish it was clutching in its jaws.

Sarut said: ''I came to work on the power line and heard the a noise in the water from the fish pond. It was a monitor lizard with a fish in its mouth.

''I did not know what to do so I shouted and it ran away.''

When the rescuers arrived, the greedy reptile had climbed up a tree until it was 10ft above the ground.

The team had difficulty catching the reptile as it attempted to escape by jumping into the roof of one of the houses next to the tree.

After almost an hour, they cornered the lizard but it resisted its catchers by trying to hit them with its tail.

Soon after, the rescuers were able to pin down the animal and secured its legs with a rope.

The monitor lizard was taken away and later released into the wild.