A knife-wielding robber got more than he bargained for when he attempted to steal money from a store owner trained in karate.
The man met his match when he demanded money from Edinburgh newsagent Mohammed Afzah, a former police bodyguard for the prime minister of Pakistan.
The robber was forced to flee empty-handed when Mohammed adopted his defensive stance and told him: "Come on and give it a go then."
Mohammed, who was born in Pakistan, spent eight years in the country's security police, where he was trained in hand-to-hand combat and anti-terrorist techniques, before guarding politicians and VIPs as a bodyguard in Lahore.
He told Convenience Store: "The robber ran in to my store waving a knife and screaming at me. He told me over and over again to hand over money from the till, but I wasn't going to give him anything. Instead, I started shouting back at him and looked into his eyes and told him to come and have a go. I definitely scared him and he ran away. I would do the same again, but I wouldn't recommend other retailers do the same. I acted like I did because I knew what I was doing."
Mohammed has handed over CCTV footage from the raid, which police are studying in an attempt to identify the would-be-robber.
l For more on retailers who choose to fight back, and advice on best practice, see Zero Tolerance p30.
The man met his match when he demanded money from Edinburgh newsagent Mohammed Afzah, a former police bodyguard for the prime minister of Pakistan.
The robber was forced to flee empty-handed when Mohammed adopted his defensive stance and told him: "Come on and give it a go then."
Mohammed, who was born in Pakistan, spent eight years in the country's security police, where he was trained in hand-to-hand combat and anti-terrorist techniques, before guarding politicians and VIPs as a bodyguard in Lahore.
He told Convenience Store: "The robber ran in to my store waving a knife and screaming at me. He told me over and over again to hand over money from the till, but I wasn't going to give him anything. Instead, I started shouting back at him and looked into his eyes and told him to come and have a go. I definitely scared him and he ran away. I would do the same again, but I wouldn't recommend other retailers do the same. I acted like I did because I knew what I was doing."
Mohammed has handed over CCTV footage from the raid, which police are studying in an attempt to identify the would-be-robber.
l For more on retailers who choose to fight back, and advice on best practice, see Zero Tolerance p30.
No comments yet