Failed robbery at scooter showroom
The hero owner of a scooter showroom slammed an armed robber to the ground and forced him to flee empty-handed.
Nick Thomson, who runs ScooterMart on Lovers Lane, in Paget, said he took on the raider, who appeared to have a handgun, after he saw him reach for something in his sweater.
He added that he realised the man had a firearm only when he checked security camera footage.
He said: “When I saw that, I realised it was probably not very smart for me to tackle him.
“I started to ask myself why I did that. I’m still kind of glad I did it though. Next time I will slam him harder.”
Mr Thomson added that he was the only person in the store. He was sitting behind the counter before noon on Monday, when he saw a bike with two men dressed in black on board pull up outside. He said one of the men, who was wearing a ski mask and a dark-tinted visor, came into the store and the second remained outside.
Mr Thomson added: “That raised alarms for me. I see lots of people who come in to buy bikes and I could tell something was a bit off.”
He got to his feet and approached the man, who reached into his sweater.
He said: “I was watching his hands. I could tell he was reaching for a weapon, but I didn’t know what it was at the time.
“I tried to get away, but we wound up wrestling, so I picked him up and slammed him.”
Mr Thomson ran into the back of the store and called the police as the thief fled.
He suspected the culprit may have staked out the store and waited for a quiet moment. Mr Thomson advised other business owners to be wary.
He said: “This is happening more and more in Bermuda and you have to have your wits about you, especially if you have valuable goods on sale because people think there is more to steal.”
Police said the raid was under investigation and appealed for witnesses who were in the Lovers Lane or Rural Hill areas around the time of the robbery.