A ROBBER brandishing a crowbar was overpowered by a brave shopkeeper who recognised him as a regular customer.
The 33-year-old trader reacted instantly when the raider burst in to the off-licence, banged the iron bar on the counter and demanded the contents of the till.
The shopkeeper tussled with the intruder, knocked the crowbar out of reach, then detained him until police arrived minutes later.
The businessman, a partner in the family-run K and S off-licence, in Benwell, Newcastle, said: "We grappled for a while and I managed to get him to drop the crowbar. At the same time a girl came to the door and I asked her to get the police while I held the man down."
The girl's father came over to help detain the robber until police arrived.
A CID spokesman said: "A 19-year-old man has been arrested in connection with attempted robbery."
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