Police: Customer puts choke hold on hatchet-wielding robber
SPRINGFIELD, Ore. - A customer put a choke hold on a man with a hatchet who tried to rob a deli Sunday night, police said.
Officers arrived on scene at Ashley's Deli, 4027 Main Street, to find Sidney Sean Queener, 22, "in the grasp of the customer," Springfield Police said.
According to police, Queener entered the deli shortly before 9 p.m. with a hatchet and demanded money from an employee.
The customer, Daniel Gehrig of Springfield, said that he heard the events taking place from a nearby slot machine.
"The guy that was robbing the place had no Idea I was behind him," Gehrig said. "I looked back at the employee, he gave me that look of 'Oh my god, what can I do?' ... and that's when it kicked in."
Gehrig said that after he evaluated the situation before he tackled Queener.
"We struggled for a little bit, and I grabbed ahold of the hatchet. He started to struggle some more so I started choking him out until he gave up," said Gehrig. "I didn't even think, I acted. It wasn't about my safety, it was about helping (the cashier)."
Queener faces charges of first degree robbery and menacing.
The incident capped a busy weekend for police, who responded to three shootings and a destructive drunk driving crash in addition to the hatchet robbery.
...."destructive" drunk driving crash? sigh.Â
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Good job, Daniel Gehrig. Thanks for being there for your neighbor. Great news.
Finally, a happy story for the new year.
Too bad the customer didn't "bury the hatchet"into Queener
Good job for this customer, and no gun required.
 @browntown At the same time, no gun was required to attempt an armed-robbery of the establishment either. Hurr durr, imagine that a whole other side to the argument.Â
"Sidney Sean Queener" ... no wonder he took to a life of crime.
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Why do parents do things like this to their kids?
Is the customer a retired cop?
Just one more example...if the bad guy doesn't have a gun, he will find something else...still the crook, not the weapon.Â
I hope the DA doesn't "Cut" a deal with this lowlife and he feels the sharp blade of justice at his sentencing.
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Gotta love the customer for stepping in to help though..
Wanna bet the guy tells the police he did this because the economy is bad, he was hungry, can't find a job, etc.? If he wasn't so poor, he coulda afforded a gun! We should feel sorry for this poor little criminal and provide him with many government-subsidized programs, including education, housing, food, clothing.. Oh wait, that's exactly what's going to happen for at least 7.5 years. *sigh*
Nice. I guess the bad guy didn't have any backup.
Nice save!
Good move on the part of the customer, dumb move on the part of the hatchet wielder.
Good story, no one was injured or killed, positive outcome all around.
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Unfortunately, he doesn't look smart enough to have learned his lesson.
That customer would be a "handy" guy to have around in an emergency, way to go customer.
 @Kachina Why...so someone can die?
I see..so your plan is to let a punk with a hatchet endanger everyone at the deli and whoever else he encounters when he flees? Thanks to the fearless actions of the customer, no one got hurt, and the perp is now behind bars. What's your problem? Great world this would be if no one ever had the stones to fight and do what's right. Ohhh..someone might have gotten killed. You're so right. No one would have been killed or seriously wounded if this guy was allowed to run free. Great thinking. Try posting again when you get back from Fantasyland. Â
"Queener faces charges of first degree robbery and menacing."
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I dunno..maybe it's just me..but typically dead people don't..ya know..face charges.
@deejm2112 @KillsGermsOnContact Sadly Im starting to get to the point that any and all criminals should be put down before the breed and cause more criminals to plague our world. It really upsets me too that Ive got this attitude about things now.
 @KillsGermsOnContact I don't have a problem...whats yours? The dude lived?
he should have hatched a better plan
Yep, he's going to be a queen all righty.
WTG, customer.. VERY well done..! Â Â :-)
OK, no one has said it yet, so I will: 'when do we outlaw hatchets (and knives, and mauls, and axes, etc) to keep them from committing robberies like this one?'
 @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE Ok, ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE, get outta my head!  : )
 @theprodigal Sorry man, won't happen again.. ... well, er, uh, .. never mind.
 @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE They should also list hydraulic wood splitters as a torture device.
FARGO!
 @Beergod Indeed!
The only even remotely close that comes to mind is the 'chipper' scene in Fargo! LOL
Maybe wood chippers should be added to 'the list' (?)
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 @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE  @Beergod "And for what? ...There's more ta life than a little money, ya know. And here ya are, and it's a beautiful day."
@Beergod Eww thatd make one heck of a mess.
 @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE If he had a gun the likely hood of a lethal ending is increased greatly. Do you think the customer would have grabbed him if he was armed with a gun?
 @deejm2112  @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE Do you think the customer would have grabbed him if the customer was armed with a gun?
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See how that works?
 @deejm2112  @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredEÂ
Maybe the customer would have been packing and shot the bad guy.
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Then there would be a totally different discussion here.
How 'bout we deal with the event that actually happened? How would that be? There was no gun. The criminal was subdued. The cops came. No one got hurt. You should stick to reading fiction.
I think it's safe to assume that anyone who thinks like Queener is not very bright or stable. If it's possible to get the drop on them, and end the threat right there, good for whoever has the rocks to do that.
 @KillsGermsOnContact Well, speaking from having experience of being robbed at gunpoint, I would add just a couple thoughts:
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1). Without having been in the situation first-hand or have examined security video of said event, second guessing is a pretty superfluous and fuzzy endeavor. Â There are always little 'clues' that a reasonably aware person ('victim') can key into rather quickly once a person finds him/her self in a potentially violent crime situation.Â
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2). It is true, that even in instances where firearms are used in the commission of a robbery, that overall, violent outcomes are not in the norm. Most robbers just want the money and to get away successfully. Most really don't intend to hurt anyone. Â At the same time, that doesn't mean that things can spiral downward or out of control should unexpected things happen -- especially if the perp is high or just plain psychologically unstable.
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Plus, I think you're placing too much emphasis on the 'weapon' side of the equation and not enough on the physical prowess of perp vs. 'victim' (or even bystander[s]). Â If the perp is a runt with a rifle, a bigger guy taking the perp by surprise might be a totally plausible pursuit. Â Every situation is different, and the ones that use their brains to read that situation correctly are the ones most likely to remain unharmed. Â If the perp can be taken down without harm to self or innocent others, so be it.
@deejm2112 Im sure of lot would have yes, and then we'd be feeding the worms instead of feeding yet another worthless scum in jail.
 @ThePosterFormerlyKnownAsPhredE Look, the customer was using his hands. Hands can be deadly weapons.
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If we allow teachers to have hands in the classroom, how do we know they're not going to wig out and start choking kids? Maybe if we ban -very large- hands, only small-handed people will be able to choke out kids or hatchet-attackers.
 @Playanekes Good point. Let's outlaw hands too.
 @flyroy  @Playanekes Yes.
 @flyroy  @Playanekes It would have to be both, flyroy, in case the teacher is ambidextrous.
 @Playanekes Would that be left hands, right hands, or both?
Very brave customer. Good on ya, mate!