Exclusive: New Jersey cellphone store employee fights back with squeegee during robbery
PATERSON, New Jersey (WABC) -- A cellphone store employee in New Jersey refused to back down when he was confronted by an armed robber.
Abdul Malek, 40, is a fearless salesman and he now has the scars to prove it.
On Saturday morning around 11 a.m., a razor blade-wielding robber came into the Paterson phone store and demanded money. But instead of cash, the violent criminal got a fight.
Malek recounted the attempted robbery on Monday. He said the man walked in pretending to want to buy a phone, but within minutes it was clear he wanted money.
During the confrontation, the suspect pulled out three open blades and used them against Malek during their fight.
Despite being smaller physically, despite getting slashed in his neck, face, leg and hands and despite not being armed, he said he never gave up.
"He had a blade on my neck like this. So I pushed it away. He quickly took another one out. I kicked away like this. I started punching him," Malek said.
He punched, kicked and eventually grabbed a squeegee to beat the robber away.
Some of the slashes came very close to Malek's eye and veins, but he said he was not scared and it simply was not his time to go.
He said he is glad the robber got away with only three "dummy" phones that were for display only.
Patterson police are now looking for the razor blade-slashing robber.
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