CCTV shows hero fish and chip shop staff batter knife-wielding robber
This is the dramatic moment hero staff batter a knife-wielding robber holding up a fish and chip shop.
CCTV footage shows the crook barging behind the counter of Bens Fish Bar in Sparkbrook, Birmingham.
The hoodie-wearing thug demands cash from the till in front of horrified customers.
Chippy owner Zafar Iqbal and his staff then wrestle the thief to the floor of the chippy.
Staff pinned the yob to the ground while a customer dialled 999 and waited for the police to arrive.
Chip shop staff pin down knife-wielding robber
Mr Iqbal, 56, said: “We were busy on a Friday and this guy comes in and I ask him what he would like to order.
“He says he’s still looking so I ask another customer.
“Suddenly he barges his way around the counter and I can see he’s got a large knife which he had in his pocket.
“With his other hand he forces his hand into the till and grabs some money.
“One of my staff grabs the knife while I and another member of staff wrestle him onto the floor.
“He was very aggressive and shouting but we managed to sit on him. We had to sit on him for 13 minutes before the police arrived.”
Mr Iqbal runs the chippy with his wife and two grown-up children.
He added: “I have run this fish shop for 25 years and this has never happened to me before ever.
“It all happened so quickly. I did karate a few years ago but that is the only self-defence I have ever done.
“When this man started threatening us I just thought, ‘We have worked hard for this, you are not going to take it from us.’
“I am very proud of my staff. They didn’t hesitate to act.”
West Midlands Police reportedly arrested the man on suspicion of robbery after being called to the shop at around 5pm on Friday, October 11.
