Police Sapper with No Arms Catches Woman Handbag Thief
A police sapper, whose arms were severed more than 10 years ago, has thwarted an attempt by two motorcycle riders to snatch a woman”s handbag in Beirut, An Nahar daily reported Wednesday.
It said that Mahmoud Khashab was in a taxi in Beirut”s Bir Hassan neighborhood when he heard a woman crying for help after two men on a motorbike stole her purse.
Khashab immediately stepped out of the cab and ran after one of the men who remained behind when the bike driver sped away.
The thief then jumped into a passing car and pointed a knife to the driver”s head, asking him to speed away. But Khashab shouted at the vehicle”s owner, asking him to stop.
The police sapper got into the car and shoved the thief”s head with what was left of one of his amputated arms, pretending to be pointing a gun at him.
The thief got confused and dropped his knife, An Nahar said.
Khashab later asked people on the site to get him a rope. He tied the thief”s hands, despite his severed arms, and took him to a police station, according to the newspaper. The woman later got her stolen purse back.
An Nahar said that the sapper lost his arms more than 10 years ago while he was defusing a landmine.