A US man was caught trying to steal 75 bottles of body lotion by stuffing them down his trousers.

Chamil Guadarrama, 30 - who was shopping in the Bath + Body Works store in Springfield, Massachusetts - was reportedly caught shoplifting by a sales assistant who spotted him slipping bottles of lotion through the zip in his trousers.

Guadarrama is believed to have tied string around each ankle to keep the bottles from falling out.

When challenged by the store worker, he tried to flee the store but was arrested after a chase by store detectives.

Sgt. Delaney said Guadarrama "had a hard time running and was extremely bowlegged" and once in custody his legs were "extremely chafed."

It is not known why Guadarrama needed quite so much lotion.