Alleged robber at ‘wrong house’
Sergeant Terry Richards tackled the man to the ground, wrestled the gun from him and handcuffed him.
In depositions to the Nelson District Court, Richards said he and his wife were in bed reading on October 16 when they heard the doorbell ring.
Richards opened the front door and was confronted by a man wearing a beanie pulled over his forehead and a bandanna masking his face, the court was told.
The next thing he lifted his hand and I saw a pistol pointed at my stomach, said Richards.
The man demanded money and cocked the gun. You picked the wrong house, said Richards.
He grabbed the pistol and the mans right hand and twisted them upwards so the barrel pointed at the sky.
The pair struggled and tripped.
At this point I grabbed the pistol with my left hand and punched the person three times with my right until he let go, said Richards.
Calling to his wife to ring the police, Richards handed the pistol to an English student staying in the house and eventually secured the man with handcuffs.
The man, who has name suppression, faces charges of aggravated robbery, having his face covered and carrying an air pistol for unlawful purposes.
He has been committed to trial in the Nelson High Court.
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Thursday, January 31st, 2008 at 6:05 pm under