Police late Sunday arrested a young suspected car thief who allegedly stabbed a policeman in Rehovot earlier in the day Sunday, inflicting serious wounds, Israel Radio reported.

The young man and his accomplice apparently resisted arrest and a violent struggle ensued.

One of the car thieves, who was moderately injured during the scuffle, was caught by police before his suspected accomplice was tracked down.

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The Rehovot police fielded a report of an apparent attempt to steal a vehicle on one of the city's streets. A police car manned by two officers arrived at the scene. The officers caught two men in the midst of an attempted car theft. The police officers tried to arrest the two suspects, and those resisted arrest, sparking a violent scuffle.

Detectives who rushed to the scene witnessed one of the car thieves attacking one of the officers with a screwdriver. The detectives fired shots, but missed the assailant. One of the shots fired by the police moderately wounded one of the car thieves in his leg. The other thief managed to escape and fled to nearby orchards.

It appears that the escaped assailant was the one responsible for the stabbing.

The police are utilizing a plane to search for the suspect from the sky, as well as conducting an intensive ground search with the help of horseback officers, jeeps and Border Police officers.