Members of the public shared their inspirational stories on how they became heroes at a special police awards ceremony last week.

They were honoured for their courage in dealing with random circumstances that led them to catch criminals and thwart crime as they went about their daily lives.

As well as a host of heroic tales from members of the public, police officers were also recognised for commitment to their work and for going beyond the call of duty.

Divisional Commander Mark Whyman explained: "It was a special event to recognise the tremendous work being done by our officers and the support we have received from the public.

"Across the district, members of the public have saved lives and behaved with tremendous courage in catching criminals and helping to stop crime.

"They, and the tireless work of some very dedicated police officers, were honoured with these awards and we are very proud of them."

Many people spend New Year's Day recovering from the festivities the night before, but Keighley man Craig Midgley kicked off 2003 by grappling with and apprehending a would-be car thief.

The 30 year old security guard was returning from his partner's house at 2am after the New Year's celebrations when the incident happened.

He explained: "I was walking back to my parents' house on Fell Crescent and as I came round the corner I heard a car alarm going off and saw this guy looking round and running away from the car.

"He didn't see me and was just running full tilt straight at me. I put my arm out and we both went down onto the floor.

"I managed to get my phone out of my pocket and ring my dad - their house was just over the road so he came out and rang the police.

"It was a real shock and it all happened so fast. I ended up with cuts and I cut my eye in the fight."

Mr Midgley detained the man until police arrived. Police found stolen car keys by the man and it transpired that he had broken into Mr Midgley's elderly neighbour's house while they were celebrating New Year and taken the car keys. Police also found a stash of jewellery on the man.

Divisional Commander Whyman also spoke highly of Sunwin House security officer Imran Zaman, who helped an off duty police officer to apprehend a wanted man.

When DC Tracey Howes chanced upon the aggressive offender who had evaded arrest for several weeks she asked Mr Zaman for his help.

"He stepped in and helped as best he could. It was an incredibly brave thing to do. But without him, detaining the offender would have been very difficult," said Divisional Commander Whyman.

Barclays cashier in Keighley Gillian Sutton was also commended for her quick thinking, which prevented the theft of a large amount of cash from a vulnerable elderly lady.

Mrs Sutton, from Laycock, explained: "An elderly lady came into the bank wanting to make a large withdrawal. It became obvious to me that she was a little upset so I went into some detail with her and it transpired that some workmen had brought her down to the bank to make the withdrawal for some work they had done at her house.

"But it seemed an awful lot for the work she said they had done. It's a fine line when it comes to asking people about their transactions because obviously you can't question everyone who makes a large withdrawal. But something just didn't seem right so I contacted our fraud unit and then called the police.

"They arrived and as far as I know the situation was sorted and the lady kept her savings."

Mrs Sutton said she had been impressed with the stories of public and police bravery at the awards night and said she was delighted to have been involved.

Paul Stewart, who works at Martens Conveyor Belts Ltd on Coney Lane in Keighley, was also commended.

He single-handedly detained a criminal for an offence of Burglary outside his work place until Police arrived.

Police officers Khalid Khan, Richard Leonard, Tracey Littlefair and Fiona Butterfield were commended for tracking a burglar back to his front door, using a foot print they found at the scene of the crime in Long Lee.

Their careful detective work meant they could re-trace the footsteps which subsequently led to the arrest and charge of the prolific burglar.

Police employee Rachel Atkinson was working on the front desk at Keighley Police Station when her suspicions were raised by a caller. She kept the man talking while checks revealed he was wanted. He was subsequently arrested on an outstanding warrant and went straight to court.

PC Teresa Varley, PC Michael Wilkinson and PC Dean Smith were commended for their part in containing a violently deranged man threatening police officers and the public in Keighley during August last year.

Divisional Commander Whyman said: "The awards give the opportunity to recognise exceptional work like this and other cases of excellence.

"PC Astrid Kilburn and PC Cullingford also had a brilliant result when they executed a search warrant with maximum effectiveness on the Braithwaite estate, which resulted in the recovery of stolen property and drugs."

Police officers from Keighley Police who continue to thwart crime even when off duty were among those honoured.

PS Peter Kitching, PC Gary Jeggo, PC Douglas Cain and PC John Higgins were all commended for separate acts of tenacious and dedicated policing whilst off duty, often resulting in the arrest of offenders.

Other officers were rewarded for their commitment to their work, including PC Lew MacKenzie, PC Adrian Foyston and civilian Gary Smith for their work on the campaign to combat car-key burglaries.DS Peter Barrett was praised for his work leading the Keighley Divisional Burglary team to reduce burglaries and increase detections.

Keighley Inspector Mark Allsop and his team were commended for their investigation into the murder of Mark Webster in Addingham last year. PC Douglas Cain and PC Samantha Buckley were recognised for consistently displaying a high level of commitment and dedication to their roles.

A special award -- in memory of a popular and dedicated officer -- was given to the widow of DC Hugh Brady.