A Hamilton man used a sign advertising pies as a shield after a knife-wielding man allegedly threatened a dairy owner during a shoplifting in the central city, before a crowd of bystanders helped chase him down.
Police were called to a store on Victoria St, near Garden Pl, at about 3.15pm yesterday, after a man allegedly stole items from the shop and then threatened workers with a weapon. No one was physically assaulted or injured.
The 34-year-old was arrested and charged with shoplifting, possession of an offensive weapon, threatening to kill, and aggravated assault. He was due to appear in the Hamilton District Court today.
Jaxson Anderson-Smith was walking through Garden Pl on his way to grab a late lunch when he noticed a commotion nearby. A man was pulling items from a backpack and throwing them at another man, who he recognised as the owner of a convenience store.
"I thought, I'll watch this situation, make sure the dairy owner's okay, make sure it doesn't escalate into violence," he told 1News.
The fourth item the man pulled from his backpack was a roughly 25 centimetre blade.
"The moment he pulled that knife out, the whole situation changed," Anderson-Smith said.
Onlookers began screaming as the man allegedly brandished the weapon. The dairy owner fled back inside his shop, and the man chased him in.
Fearing for the shop owner's safety, Anderson-Smith followed and approached the doorway, hoping to help from behind. Instead, the man turned to leave and suddenly found himself face to face with him, allegedly with his knife raised.
"He started doing like a fast walk at me with it," he said.
He stepped back to clear the doorway so the man wouldn't feel cornered, then grabbed a nearby pie-brand sign to use as a makeshift shield in case he was attacked.
By then, a crowd had gathered. Several bystanders stepped in to confront the man, including a driver who pulled his truck up onto the kerb, got out and demanded he drop the weapon.
Outnumbered, the man dropped the knife and fled towards London St where he was subsequently arrested.
Anderson-Smith said the moment was frightening but that he didn't hesitate to step in.
"If I was in that situation, I would really want someone to back me up. You don't want to be a lone man, and you don't want witnesses to turn away."
He had posted on Facebook about the incident and had been heartened by the support from the community.
"It's good to see that everyone is not tolerant of the crime. Nobody wants to get stabbed."
Adrenaline had carried him through the moment, he said.
"Am I just going to be another bystander? Or am I going to at least try to take some pressure off the dairy owner."
SHARE ME