A week ago, at around 2 p.m., a young boy entered a shop in Iwiny. He was wearing a hooded jacket and a balaclava. He had a pistol in his hand. People in the village say that the shop assistant’s husband chased him out of the first shop. The boy decided to try his luck at another grocery store. However, there were too many people there and, according to locals, this stopped him from taking action. In the third shop, he approached the counter, put a large bag on it, pointed the pistol at the saleswoman and ordered her to fill it with cigarettes.
The entire incident was recorded by cameras. The shop owner, who watched the footage, said that the saleswoman was exceptionally calm. It was clear that she was explaining something to the boy, gesturing, and then pointing at the camera. After this demonstration, the young man left the shop without any loot. The saleswoman and the owner notified the police.
“On Monday, 20 February, at around 3:30 p.m., we received a report that a masked boy had entered one of the shops in Iwiny with an object resembling a weapon,” confirms police spokesperson Adriana Szajwaj. “The attacker demanded cigarettes. When the saleswoman refused to comply, he ran away. The boy was apprehended later that same day. He is fifteen years old, and the family court is handling the case,” the spokesperson adds.
The weapon with which the fifteen-year-old frightened the saleswomen turned out to be an air gun firing plastic pellets. The woman who reacted so calmly to the armed robbery explained to the youngster that he was still young and should think more carefully about what he was doing, and that he would be recorded by the cameras, which would cause the police to catch him quickly. These sensible remarks got through to the attacker.
“The saleswoman might have panicked if the boy had been aggressive,” says the shop owner. “But he was calm, did not shout and was not threatening. I am nevertheless full of admiration for how composed she was.”
(information: Grażyna Hanaf)