A restaurant owner described the moment she faced down an armed robber in a popular neighbourhood eatery.The attempted gun robbery was a first in about five years of business for the Wok Express in Southampton.“It’s a shame a thing like this could happen, especially when everybody knows everybody in the neighbourhood,” said the woman, who asked not to be identified.She questioned whether “we have to be scared to work as a cashier now”.Police are still seeking the would-be assailant, who fled into the Riviera Road neighbourhood after angrily demanding cash.The woman was working at the store’s takeaway window when a man wearing a dark-visored helmet and dark clothes approached the counter.“When he came closer, then I realised he had a gun in one hand and a paper bag in the other,” she said.“I stepped back, and he said, ‘Give me the money’.”The intruder leaned in and “slammed” his hand on the cash register when she refused.“I said, ‘Look, there’s [CCTV] camera here, you’d better run’,” she added.The attack at 5.30pm on Wednesday fell during what is normally a busy time for the restaurant.“But there was nobody at that time, so maybe he was watching,” the woman said.“It’s hard to see how serious the guy was, but it’s definitely something you don’t expect. Usually we know our customers; it’s more or less the same people all the time.”The woman was confident the store’s cameras, including one trained on the express window, would help police catch the man.“They have very clear images and show exactly what happened,” she said.“Everything is back to normal now. They didn’t get what they wanted so hopefully they won’t come back.”Public Safety Minister Michael Dunkley said of the incident: “It’s worth noting this happened at a time of day when it was still light, and in a busy area, at a busy time. There had to be a number of people who would have seen something suspicious, or seen the culprit.“Based on where we stand at this time in Bermuda, we need to meet violence and antisocial behaviour with truth and courage.”It was up to people to “come forward and play their part” publicly or by calling the confidential Crime Stoppers hotline, 800-8477 he added.“We have to get on top of this. There would have to be people who saw something.”The Minister said residents had grown “very uncomfortable with the current situation”.He called on the community to “stand up, have a gut check, and play a part”.“I can’t understate how important information is. We have seen in recent weeks that police have been very successful because of it.“All of us in Bermuda love to talk, but let’s make that talk constructive, to make Bermuda a better place.”According to police, the offender left through the back of the property empty-handed, and headed for Riviera Road.Anyone who saw anything suspicious is asked to contact Detective Sergeant Derricka Burns on 234-1010 or call Crime Stoppers.