This is the dramatic moment an arcade goer spotted a shifty local stealing her phone - then bravely chased and caught him.

Angelene Rosales and her friend, Alexas, who was on vacation, were playing air hockey inside a shopping mall in Cebu, the Philippines, on July 4.

They had set up a camera to record themselves but inadvertently captured the daylight theft from the scruffy-looking local.

Footage shows the thief passing by to grab Alexas' smartphone and attempting to hide it with the chair he was holding.

The girl then saw this and dashed over, bravely holding onto the arm of the man, and taking her device back.

The suspect apologised and rushed out of the establishment.

The incident left the duo shocked and they decided to go home.

Angelene said: 'We reported the incident to the management, but the man had already left. We are lucky that it was caught on video.

'I hope that the video reminds everyone to take care of their belongings.'

Managers at the shopping mall said they had issued a round-robin notice with the man's image to warn staff to kick him out if he is seen again.