A knife-wielding robber fled a Devon shop empty-handed after the 68-year-old owner told him to "use the knife or p*** off".
Brian Hammond was confronted by the hood-wearing man with a six-inch knife who demanded all the money from the till.
But the robber got more than he bargained for when the feisty owner picked up a screwdriver and faced him down, reports The Mirror.
Mr Hammond, who has run the newsagents in Paignton, Devon, for 15 years, said he was not prepared to meekly hand over his hard-earned money.
"I came out of the store room and he was standing there with the knife. He demanded money from the till. I thought he was joking until he came around behind me and I knew he was serious," Mr Hammond said today.
"I picked up the screwdriver, which was on the counter and told him 'either use your knife or piss off'. To my surprise, he did."
It is not the first time Mr Hammond has taken the law into his own hands.
Two years ago he chased two thieves out of the store and into the street after they targeted his shop.
He said the police had warned him on that occasion that he risked facing assault charges if he had caught them.
"I know some people get hurt doing it but to me we have no choice," he said. "I am not having it any more. I didn't think about it, I just did it."
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