A POLICE officer lost his helmet as he tried to arrest two men on suspicion of affray.

The headgear went missing at around 2.20am on Sunday following an incident at the junction of Fleet Street and Bridge Street.

There were a number of revellers enjoying a night out on the town at the time.

Police believe that someone has either picked up the helmet for safekeeping or it has been stolen.

Police spokeswoman Alvina Kumar said: "There were several on-lookers in the area at the time and one of them may have picked up the helmet for safe-keeping.

"It may well be that someone thought they would look after it or they may have stolen it.

"It all happened within moments. It wasn't left there any length of time.

"It still hasn't been handed in and we would urge them to do so.

"The person in possession of the helmet or anyone finding it discarded is asked to hand it in at Swindon Central Police Station at the earliest opportunity."

Fixed penalty tickets carrying £80 fines were issued to the two men, who were 40 and 28 years old.

Phil Davenport, of the Wiltshire branch of the Police Federation, said that he cannot recall a case of anyone being prosecuted for stealing a bobby's helmet.

He said: "It was probably a light-hearted prank.

"I mean, what benefit would it be to anyone?

"Whoever has taken it may be showing it off as a kind of trophy."

The incident comes as concerns increase about town centre disorder.

Yesterday, the Adver reported how our Your Swindon, Your Verdict survey had revealed how one in five of our readers are too scared to venture into the centre of Swindon after it gets dark.

Police have vowed to step up measures to tackle the weekly round of drunken brawls and loutish behaviour.

Nearly 900 people of all ages responded to the survey, designed to find out what townsfolk think of a variety of aspects about living and working in Swindon.

Anyone with information about the lost helmet should call Swindon police on 01793 528111.

Hat facts

The hat that was taken was a custodian helmet, which are worn by male officers. Women wear a smaller hat with a rim.

A frequent complaint about the older type of helmet is that they are too heavy and frequently fall off during pursuits.

In 2003, Swindon police were chosen to trial a new prototype lightweight helmet.

Based on a riding hat, it was also knifeproof and had a lower centre of gravity to reduce the risk of it toppling.

When Robert Peel introduced the first police force in London in 1829, they wore top hats. These were soon replaced by the traditional helmet.

One of the most famous photographs of the last 50 years is that of a policeman using his helmet to cover a male streaker's modesty during a rugby match in 1974.

Gareth Bethell