Seventy-year-old Naif Qatamin will never be confused with Paul Hogan of “Crocodile Dundee” fame.
Qatamin is the owner of the Salena One Market in Tacoma, Washington — a convenience store that’s been hit by robberies more than once.
Usually, the smartest thing is to give in to the robber’s demands. According to a report from KING-TV in Seattle, that’s what he’s done most of the time.
However, he had a secret weapon stashed behind the counter in case someone wanted a knife fight: a bigger knife.
On Feb. 5, Qatamin was finally able to deploy it in a scene straight out of the 1986 film.
According to KING, Tacoma Police Department officers received a call just before 8 p.m. after an attempted robbery at the market.
The unidentified man, who has since been arrested (twice, actually — we’ll get to that in a moment), had tried to stick up the Salena One Market, police said. Only, as surveillance footage showed, he didn’t exactly come with the biggest or deadliest of stabbing implements.
Qatamin said the man pointed the knife at him and said, “Listen, this is a holdup,” demanding the cash from the register.
“I said, ‘OK — I don’t think so, buddy.’” That’s when the store owner pulled out a machete — and what transpired next was caught on surveillance camera.
“And he jumped back there and fell down,” Qatamin said, brandishing the machete for the news cameras: “I hold this for him.”
“I just want to scare him,” the 70-year-old said. “I don’t want to hurt him.”
However, Qatamin’s wife, who came into the store during the attempted robbery, “was scared for” the suspect and got in between them, the store owner said.
That gave the man a chance to flee the scene.
“He was lucky my wife pushed me away,” Qatamin said.
However, not lucky enough to evade detection by Tacoma police, who were able to track down the suspect thanks to witness interviews and surveillance footage examination.
The scene was somewhat reminiscent of this one from the 1986 surprise blockbuster “Crocodile Dundee,” starring Australian acting legend Paul Hogan:
WARNING: The following video contains vulgar language that some viewers will find offensive.
Spoiler alert: Unlike “Crocodile Dundee,” the alleged perp apparently didn’t know when to quit.
“Qatamin said the suspect was released later that day and returned to the Salena One Market, threatening to rob and kill Qatamin,” KING reported.
“The owner said his son’s friends kept the suspect at the market until police arrived, and the suspect was arrested again,” the outlet reported.
Should all able-bodied citizens go armed?
“The suspect was booked into the Pierce County jail on suspicion of first-degree robbery and felony harassment.”
“I said, ‘Aren’t you the same guy who tried to rob me?’ He said yes!” KIRO-TV in Seattle quoted Qatamin as saying.
This time, however, the store owner didn’t need the aid of the machete, instead shoving the man to the ground.
“He stood by the door, and I said, ‘OK, you have to leave now,’ boom, I hit him right here, he fell, and those guys ran out, and they kept him down until the police came again,” Qatamin said.
As for his “that’s a knife” machete, he said that while it’s been at his disposal for a while, it’s the first time he’s had to use it in self-defense.
“It’s been here for years,” Qatamin said. “First time I ever touched it. I had to. I had no choice.”
Indeed, it’s a scary incident highlighting where America is in 2024 and how important it is for those who run businesses that might be targeted to keep themselves adequately protected. If only there were a constitutional amendment about that …
