A SELF-EMPLOYED taxi driver has been commended by the High Sheriff of Cumbria for his bravery in helping police to arrest two men who robbed a service station garage of £ 1,800.

Keith Hall of Reagill, near Shap, was dropping off a fare at the Westmorland Motorway Services at Tebay last September when the incident happened.

"All of a sudden I noticed these two men wearing dark balaclavas and carrying baseball bats come running out of nowhere and jump into a white Transit van.

I phoned the police on my mobile, and stayed in contact with them as I followed the van," he said.

The police were able to arrest the men when they crashed the van at Penrith truck shop.

The High Sheriff, Lady Lucinda Hothfield, presented Mr Hall with a certificate at a ceremony at the police headquarters in Penrith and praised him for the cool manner in which he approached the situation.

Mr Hall told the Gazette: "I feel very proud to have received this award.

It was obviously too dangerous to try to tackle the men, but I am glad I was of help."

Two men from Glasgow were later jailed for four years after pleading guilty to robbery.