A British tourist has made a grovelling apology after he was caught on camera stealing cash dropped by a woman at a supermarket checkout.

Charles Edward Coote, 79, had been ''running low on money'' after staying for two months in the vibrant Soi 17 street in the red light city of Pattaya, eastern Thailand.

Supermarket CCTV shows how he noticed local woman Pratumrat Maymum, 30, drop two 1,000 baht (£25) notes while paying for her groceries on Monday (June 10).

Charles, from Barking, east London, waited for her to leave then covered the cash with his foot before pocketing it.

The woman only noticed the missing money, the equivalent of £50 when she returned home. She rushed back to the store to check what had happened and was shocked when she watched back the incident on the cameras.

Pratumrat said that after she complained to police, Coote contacted her to apologise and return the money. She met him yesterday (June 13) at the supermarket where he made a ''tearful apology''.

Speaking today (June 14) Pratumrat said: ''He contacted me and said he wanted to give the money back. I went to meet him and he was nearly crying. He had tears in his eyes.

''He said he had been staying in Thailand for two months and was running low on money. It’s still not an excuse for stealing.''

The victim said that she was happy with Charles' apology and did not want him to be prosecuted.

Local police who had been investigating the theft agreed not to take it any further. Charles left without being arrested and is free to continue his trip.

Pratumrat added: ''I want to thank everybody who helped me. Now I have my money back.

''It might be a small amount of money for some people, but for me it’s a lot.''

Investigating officer, Police Captain Nakhonrat Nonsrisard, said the matter had been resolved privately.

He added: ‘’The suspect apologised and said he would not do it again. He returned the money so we’re not continuing with prosecution.’’

Police were today hunting a crafty tourist who was caught on camera stealing cash that a female shopper dropped at a supermarket checkout.

Pratumrat Maymum, 30, was paying for her groceries when two 1,000 baht (25GBP) notes fell from her purse at the Friendship Supermarket in Pattaya, Thailand.

The woman only noticed the missing money, the equivalent of 50GBP, when she returned home. She rushed back to the store to check what had happened.

Staff were shocked when they reviewed the CCTV, which shows the grey-haired western man in shorts and shirt waiting behind her in the queue.

Ten seconds into the video, Pratumrat is seen dropping the cash. The man immediately notices and keeps an eye on the money.

Instead of telling the owner, the quick-footed thief covered the money with his right sandal before casually picking it up and pocketing it moments after Pratumrat walked away.

His theft had gone unnoticed until Pratumrat realised her money was lost an hour later. She immediately contacted the supermarket for the video evidence before reporting it to the Pattaya police.

Pratumrat said: “After I saw the footage, I was very angry because he clearly intended to steal my money. The staff also said that he’s the regular customer, so I think he has been staying around the neighbourhood.

‘’It might be a small amount of money for some people, but for me it’s a lot.

“I can’t believe foreigners would do anything like this while staying in Thailand. I hope the police will catch and punish him as soon as possible, so other tourists will know that it’s not that easy to steal in the country.”

Pattaya Police today said they were checking the video evidence while trying to trace the owner.

Police Captain Nakhonrat Nonsrisard said: ‘’We have checked the CCTV from the supermarket and street. The suspect walked out of the shop and didn’t take a taxi. Cameras in the area lost him.

‘’It’s not easy to identify him from the video but we are appealing for anybody who recognises him to contact police. He will be punished according to the law.’’