The Tower of London’s lion pit was designed to keep wild animals in – but it also played a vital role in the arrest of an alleged coin thief.

Police received a call from the historic castle’s security team this morning to reports of a man trapped in the lion pit.

CCTV footage allegedly shows him climbing down at around 4.30am and collecting the donations that had been thrown in there by visitors.

However, the well-designed nature of the pit meant that the man could not get out.

Officers arrived and helped him out before arresting him on suspicion of theft.