A brave barista and a bystander in San Francisco jumped into action last Friday to protect a coffee shop against a would-be robber.
Surveillance video from inside Carlin's Cafe on Valencia Street shows a man in a hoodie enter the business and try to steal the backpack of a customer sitting up against the window.
That’s when barista Nick Grant rammed the suspect with a cart, grabbed him and punched him, all while the suspect sprayed him with pepper spray.
“I hit him with a cart and a scuffle ensued,” Grant said, adding he stayed focused and took the man to the ground, despite being bear sprayed directly in the face by the suspect.
“I was actually blind about half-way through. I had about 80% of my vision gone. But I still had situational awareness and luckily Jim was there to jump in,” he said.
Bystander Jim Carroll, and his wife, were walking by the café and went inside. Carroll is seen briefly putting the suspect in a headlock, allowing Grant to regain control and subdue the suspect.
"My wife turns around and shouts, 'they're robbing the place', and immediately I pulled out my phone and called 911 and ran across the street and into the café," he said.
San Francisco police arrived a few minutes later and took the man into custody. They identified him as Amir Moner, 42, of Concord, who is now facing a number of felony charges.
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"Someone was in trouble, and it was in my neighborhood," Carroll said. "It was just instinct. I knew someone was in trouble, and I ran in to help. (The suspect) was basically begging for mercy, asking to be let go, said he wouldn’t do it again. I told him he was right about that. I think this is a victory for our neighborhood."
Grant was back to work the next day.
“I would want somebody to do the same thing for me. Luckily, I was just in the right place at the right time,” Grant said.
