by James Swierzbin
JSwierzbin@abc6.com
Captivating surveillance video of an attempted burglary in New Bedford shows a convenience store owner swinging a stick to beat back a pair of burglars armed with knives.
The attempted robbery happened this past Friday night at Nick Dawoud's mini-mart on Rivet Street.
Dawoud had already been robbed earlier in the week so when 2-burglars burst in on he and his wife again on Friday night he said he couldn't just let the thieves take what they wanted, without putting up a fight.
As the burglars burst in at about 9:50PM, all Dawoud could think about was how he had been robbed of $1,800, just 4-days before.
Dawoud's decision to fight back worked at first.
Using a wooden stick, he swung ferociously at one of the would-be burglars.
His efforts were enough to make the masked man rethink his decision to rob Dawoud and instead, the wannabe burglar, decided to run right out the door.
The other masked man though wasn't convinced to give up as easily and the two men circled and chased each other for several minutes inside the store.
Eventually the masked man pried the stick away from Dawoud, but the Lebanese born store owner, refused to give in.
Dawoud grabbed a metal display shelf and used it as a weapon against the would-be burglar as his wife called for help.
The help his wife called for didn't come from the police, but from 3-men who work at a nearby Mexican restaurant that's just a few doors down from the mini-mart.
They forced their way in through the window in the mini-mart's door and within moments they had the would-be burglar down on the ground.
They held the man there until New Bedford police arrived on the scene a short time later.
Police have identified the man who was caught inside the mini-mart as 25-year old Leland Blake Rosa.
New Bedford police are still looking for the other masked man, who fled the scene after being scared off by Nick Dawoud's stick.
