* A Birmingham-based c-store owner and his wife received screwdriver stab wounds to the face as they beat off armed raiders. Balbev and Pushpa Raj, of Reservoir News Store in Edgbaston, forced the gang of three men to flee but suffered their wounds as they put up resistance to the attempted robbery. After receiving medical treatment the couple quickly re-opened the store. Their son Tony said: “We will not be deterred by people like this.”

* A retailer from Norwich has received £500 from public funds for his bravery in standing up to a robber armed with a shotgun. James Turner entered Thorpe End Stores and threatened owner Giovanni Bisoffi with the gun. However, the retailer refused to back down and tried to wrestle the firearm from the attacker, who fled empty-handed. Turner, who was later picked up by police, was sentenced to nearly five years in jail by Norwich Crown Court, while Giovanni received £500 in recognition of the courage he had shown.

* A Welsh c-store assistant refused to hand over money to a would-be robber even when he pointed a gun in her face. Pensioner Christina Thomas was working in a c-store in Aberhafesp, near Newtown, Powys, when the raider entered the store and shouted at her to hand over money from the store’s till. Christina shouted for help and hit the store’s alarm, forcing the robber to turn and run out.

* A c-store customer was stabbed in the chest after coming to the aid of a retailer being hassled by a gang of yobs in Liverpool. The man was taken to a local hospital after he tried to rescue the owner of Griffiths Stores from the gang, who had started an argument outside the store. One of the gang pulled a small knife on the man, before stabbing him and fleeing.

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