Tired after a long day and angry that his 12-hours of work would go to waste, a Philadelphia pizza shop owner decided to fight back against an armed robber and was nearly shot during a tense altercation that was captured on video.
Mohammad Remahi, 40, was inside his Gardens Pizza restaurant near 19th Street and Girard Avenue in North Philadelphia around 9 p.m. Sunday, when an unidentified man wearing a Spider-Man mask walked inside. Remahi noticed the man was carrying a gun though he initially thought it was fake.
“When I saw the gun, I felt like he’s having a toy,” Remahi said. “He’s a kid playing with a toy. That’s the feeling I got. That’s why I was like, ‘That’s a toy. That’s not a real gun.’ And I’m trying to get it from him.”
It turns out however that the gun was real. Surveillance video captures the suspect aiming the weapon at workers inside and then ordering Remahi to open the register. Remahi said he had worked 12 hours that day however and wasn’t willing to let the man walk away with his money in less than 30 seconds. That’s when he decided to fight back. As Remahi began to fight the robber, the suspect opened fire but missed.
“When he shot the gun it just made me more angry,” Remahi said. “It’s like a rage. It’s like when you have an angry dog.”
Remahi and the robber wrestled for a few seconds before the suspect broke free and fled on foot. Remahi suffered a minor ankle injury during the scuffle. No one else inside the store was hurt. With the bullet the suspect fired visible on the store’s floor, Remahi knows he’s incredibly lucky.
“I could be at the hospital,” he said. “I could be dead.”
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Remahi says his restaurant has been open since 2004 and never had any issues until recently. With Sunday’s incident, it’s now been robbed twice in the last six months. Yet despite his frightening experience, Remahi remains determined to protect his business.
“He’s not gonna shock me or make me scared or having a phobia, nothing like that,” Remahi said. “He just makes me feel stronger.”
Police don't believe the two robberies at the store are connected. If you have any information on either one, please call Philadelphia Police.
