Dutch police have arrested twin brothers on suspicion of robbery after their alleged victim spotted a picture of them following him on Google's Street View map application, a spokesman said on Friday.

Paul Eidanus, a police spokesman in the town of Groningen, said he believed the case was the first time Street View images had been used in a Dutch criminal investigation. 'For us, it is unique,' he said.

A 14-year-old boy told police last September he had been robbed of 165 ($230) and his cell phone after two men dragged him off his bicycle in Groningen, 180 kilometers (110 miles) northeast of the capital, Amsterdam.

The victim called again in March after seeing an image of himself and two men he believed were his attackers on Street View, police said in a statement.

Eidanus said police asked Google for the original photo because people's faces are blurred on Street View.

'You must tell Google clearly why you want them,' Eidanus said of the photo request. In this case, 'the photo could provide an important contribution to solving a crime.'

The company complied, and a robbery squad detective immediately recognized one of the twins.

Prosecutors will now decide whether to charge the suspects, whose identities were not released.

A spokesman for Google in the Netherlands did not immediately return a call seeking comment.