Furious fishmermen mobbed a policeman's car after he allegedly tried to extort bribes from one of their colleagues.

Seafood trader Anucha Binmusa, 46, was said he was detained while negotiating payment for cockles with local fishermen in Surat Thani, southern Thailand, on May 21.

Officers arrived in a Toyota Fortuner and arrested the trader at gunpoint on suspicion of illegal fishing.

The police then allegedly confiscated the 23 sacks of cockles worth 500,000 THB (12,866GBP) and demanded five million THB (128,666GBP) for him and his catch to be released.

The incident sparked fury among the fishermen and they crowded round the police officer's car as they cowered inside and began violently shaking it. The vehicle's rear windscreen was smashed and parts of the bumper pulled off.

Villagers held the allegedly corrupt cops hostage for three hours before the local council boss arrived persuaded them to back down.

The provincial chief police said the three officers were not charged because they were ordered to go to the village to investigate fishing violations.

Police Colonel Taksin Siriphokaphat said: "There was a report about illegal catching of cockles in the area and the officers were assigned to go there and investigate.

"After the incident, the police were released since there was no villager who wanted to press charges against them."

However, the region's chief police said the three officers will still need to report to him about the incident as it has caused dissatisfaction among the locals.

The following morning (May 21), the a group of the fishermen went to the police and made a complaint about the actions of the policeman allegedly demanding bribes.