Dan Mistreanu receiving his commendation

An on-call firefighter who gave chase and detained a man who had mugged a pensioner has received a Chief Fire Officer’s Commendation for his bravery.

Our retained on-call firefighters do a tremendous job for the community and make sacrifices to ensure we keep people safe across Staffordshire. Dan’s actions are a credit to himself and the Service.

On-call retained firefighter Dan Mistreanu, who is based in Burslem, chased and helped to detain Martin Sayer who had snatched a 72-year-old woman’s handbag after she left the town’s post office.

Dan was joined by a builder as he pursued the man, after the victim’s son first gave chase.

Sayer, who had dropped the bag and tried to hide in a car park, was held until police arrived. Sayer was later jailed for 40 months, following the incident last June.

Dan received his commendation from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service’s Chief Fire Officer Becci Bryant in a presentation at Burslem fire station on 8 January.

She said: “I’m proud of Dan as he showed courage and selflessness in pursuing this man when there could have been a risk to himself and others.

“Our retained on-call firefighters do a tremendous job for the community and make sacrifices to ensure we keep people safe across Staffordshire. Dan’s actions are a credit to himself and the Service.”

Sergeant Nichola Bagguley, of Stoke North Neighbourhood Policing Team, said: “Dan and the other men did a great job in detaining Sayer until officers were able to make the arrest. We’re grateful for their assistance as this was clearly a very distressing incident for the victim.”