Thief's arm ripped off after robbed victim mows him down

A man has been charged with attempted murder after he ran over a thief and ripped off his arm.

Father-of-three Phillip Pierre, 39, had arranged to meet 17-year-old Zachary Sam in Brooklyn, New York, on Friday afternoon to sell him a pair of Air Jordan 8 trainers for $190 (£130).

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When Sam got into Pierre's car, he pulled out a gun and stole the shoes.

ABC7NY reports that CCTV footage shows Sam getting out of the Honda Pilot and Pierre appearing to drive away but then making a U-turn and mowing down the teenager.

WARNING: DISTURBING VIDEO

Sam got up and ran from the scene but later collapsed in the street.

Doctors at Bellevue Hospital tried to reattach his arm but it is unclear if this was successful.

Alex Saint Fleur, a bus driver who witnessed the scene, told the New York Post: "I saw a kid under a car. The guy ran him over. He got out, the driver said, 'He's trying to rob me. He's trying to rob me.'

"I saw the gun on the floor," he added. "The arm was on the floor near the gun."

Sam is reported to be in a serious but stable condition and police say he will be taken to jail and charged over the armed robbery when he is well.

Pierre has been charged with second degree attempted murder.

His cousin Michael insists that he was just trying to stop him.

"I know what the video's showing - if somebody pulls a gun in your head, and you're trying to get the cops to catch him, what would you do? You're telling me just let him go?" he told ABC.