An Australian tourist is facing up to three years in prison for allegedly stealing football shirts and earphones on Thai holiday island Phuket.

Liam Allan Lakeman, 25, reportedly shoplifted from the Central Phuket mall three times before he was caught by an off-duty policeman and arrested on November 1.

CCTV footage shows the Aussie, from Carlton, Melbourne, yanking a jersey from a rack before stuffing it under his shirt. But before he could walk out of the store, the owner called him out when she recognised he was wearing a top stolen from the shop.

Liam reportedly tried to flee but was caught by cops, who pinned him down on the floor as they called for backup.

Police Lance Corporal Niratsai Charoenkijwattana of the Wichit district station said: ‘That day was our day off. We did not intend to arrest him, but the incident coincidentally happened while we were there.

‘My two friends and I were at the shopping mall and we heard an argument. A 40-year-old woman was chasing a man and fighting over store items. We initially thought they were two acquaintances arguing but the woman suddenly grabbed the foreign man's arm. Then, he lifted his shirt, pulled out three shirts he had hidden in his pants, and threw them to the floor.

‘He shook off the woman's hand and tried to walk away before she shouted, 'Help, a thief!'. We determined that he was unarmed so we tackled him. We restrained him and called the local police.

‘He did not carry a passport and refused to show a picture of it on his phone, claiming he was waiting to talk with the officers.

‘We did not smell cannabis or alcohol on him, suggesting he was not under the influence.

‘A store employee said he had shoplifted from there before, and the shirt he wore that day was a stolen one. The stolen items included three football jerseys and a box of Bose wireless headphones, which he had taken from another shop.

'During the interrogation, he admitted that he had stolen them, as seen in the video.'

Police Lieutenant Colonel Thada Sodarak, Deputy Superintendent of Investigations at the station, said Liam allegedly confessed to stealing in order to pay off his credit card debt 'because his income was insufficient'.

He added: 'The Australian man is currently being detained in custody.

‘Today, we will send him to the Phuket Kwaeng Court on theft charges under the Criminal Code, with a penalty of up to three years' imprisonment and a fine of up to 6,000 baht (141 GBP). The penalty will depend on the court's discretion.

‘After he serves his sentence, we will hand him over to Phuket Immigration to proceed with the immigration process.'

The once-pristine island of Phuket has been marred by over-tourism as the Thai government implements a visa-free scheme to boost revenue following the barren pandemic years.

The island saw 800,000 foreign visitors last year alone.

However, angry locals claim the push for tourist dollars has attracted crowds of 'low-quality' visitors from Russia, India and Australia. There are also fears that the island has become an enclave of criminal activity, with police unable to control street fights and more organised ruffians setting up rackets among local businesses.

Phuket officials said they are implementing tighter immigration controls and screening processes amid a wave of drug-related crimes and illegal activities on the island.

(1 GBP = 42.56 THB)