A car thief stole a vehicle from a petrol station after both it's owner and the staff member refuelling it left it unattended for less than a minute.

Surveillance footage captured the incident in the Chinese city of Chongqing, where after the staff member finished refuelling the black sedan, he went to inform the owner at the cashier desk, only for the thief to quickly step in to the vehicle and drive it away.

The 19-year-old man was caught four days later when he was at a restaurant with the sedan parked outside.