Police have arrested a 40-year-old suspect in Chamdor near Kagiso on Wednesday for attempting to steal an idling car after the driver got out briefly to open the gate as he arrived for work.

"The complainant alleged that on Wednesday at about 07:50 he reported for duty at his workplace and parked his idling vehicle at the parking area.

"He climbed out of the vehicle, left the door open and went to open the gate. While opening the gate, the suspect jumped into his vehicle and tried to steal it," Kagiso police spokesperson Captain Solomon Sibiya said in a statement on Friday.

The complainant ran and managed to jump into the vehicle and a struggle ensued between the two.

A security guard nearby saw the incident and came to the complainant's rescue.

"They overpowered the suspect and later called the police," Sibiya added.

The suspect was arrested and detained at Kagiso police station.

On Friday he made a brief appearance in the Kagiso Magistrate's Court on a charge of attempted theft of a motor vehicle.

He is being kept in custody for further police investigation.