A trio of thieves was caught stripping pieces from cars after one of them accidentally dialed 911 in the middle of the crime.

Police say the thieves were taking parts from a car in Middletown when one of their phones dialed 911 - without the knowledge of any of the thieves. The phone had been in the thief?s pocket, and he was unaware it had made the call.

The dispatcher who answered the call heard the robbery in progress and was able to track the call to Midland Avenue Extension. When police arrived, they found a car in the driveway that had been stripped and two men running away.

?We say in law enforcement, sometimes you gotta get lucky,? Lt. Paul Rickard, of the Middletown Police Department, says. ?This is a case where we got kinda lucky ? if he didn?t call us, we probably would never have known about it. We?d be taking ? reports this morning of items stolen from a car. And instead, it?s nice to be able to make an arrest.?

Middletown police say they can?t remember a time when a criminal accidentally dialed 911 on himself.