A South African driver is being praised for taking charge after spotting a cop allegedly driving under the influence through the streets of Pietermaritzburg.

Russell George of Prestbury told a local newspaper that he saw a police van making erratic moves and decided to follow it.

After the officer behind the wheel made several illegal maneuvers, including stopping abruptly and driving into oncoming traffic, George decided to phone emergency services and report the incident.

"After five minutes, no one had arrived," George told The Witness. "So I jumped out of my car and I approached the driver's side and asked him to come out. He looked at me and I could smell that he had been drinking."

The cop refused, so George snatched his keys and physically removed him from the car. He then dragged him over to the back of the van and locked him inside.

George noted that the cruiser appeared to have been involved in an accident.

One eyewitness said the cop told her mother he was returning for his own birthday party where he was having drinks with some friends.

Later, at the police station, it was revealed that the officer was allegedly involved in a hit-and-run accident earlier in the day, and may have also held his girlfriend at gunpoint at a nearby nightclub.

The cop was charged with driving under the influence and had his firearm taken away pending an investigation into the incident involving his girlfriend.

[H/T: Neatorama, photo via The Witness]