# 70-Year-Old ex-SAS Soldier Dares to Tackle Four Muggers and Wins



## Danjanou (25 Oct 2006)

An interesting little story that made my day. The comments on the Daily Mail's web page re the British legal system and the "rights" of victims seem all too familiar. Reprinted with the usual fair dealings yada yada yada

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/worldnews.html?in_article_id=412399&in_page_id=1811

70-year-old former British soldier who fought guerillas in Aden and Triad gangs in Hong Kong showed four muggers how it doesn't pay to mess with the SAS. 

Douglas O'Dell is past retirement age but the moves he learned as a volunteer in Britain's toughest regiment half-a-century ago stood him in good stead when he was ambushed near his home in Bielefeld, Germany, by four local toughs. 

The former Provost Sergeant put paid to the danger on the street like he once took out bandits in hotspots across the globe. 
THWACK! The first mistake came when one of the teenagers grabbed him around the throat and said in German: "Give my your money, grandad, if you don't want to get hurt." 

"Bad move," said Douglas. "The only part he got right was grandad. If you're gonna grab someone from behind take their arms and pin them to their waist. 

"This joker, I was able to grab his elbow, crouch down and throw him over my shoulder. He landed on his back on a fence and squealed like a stuck pig."   

CRASH! As one went down another moved in and Douglas thought he saw him reaching for a knife. The Birmingham-born divorcee, who has a daughter and three grandchildren, said: "I had the measure of him but I slipped on some wet leaves as he came for me and bashed my face badly on the concrete. 

"I saw his boot coming towards my face and I thought: 'No you don't, sunshine.' I grabbed his leg and twisted it until he too was screaming out in agony. 

"Then I got to my feet and kicked him in the chest."   

With two down the two remaining would-be muggers had enough. One peeled his groaning pal from the fence, the other picked up his crippled accomplice from the pavement. 

"The last I saw of them they were limping down the pavement like a WW1 trench raiding party who got clobbered," said Douglas. 

Douglas, who served nearly nine years with the Royal Warwickshire Regiment before leaving the army in the late 1950s, learned his combat moves when he was accepted for SAS training. 

He completed the course and was to join the famous regiment when he contracted malaria and had to leave the army. 

"I was upset at the time but I made the best of it. It's funny, but I never thought I would need to know that stuff again, the unarmed combat, but it came back just when I needed it."   

The youths ambushed him just 60 feet from the flat he lives in in the British Army garrison town he has called home since 1961. 

He went on: "The police only became involved because I went to the hospital with my face.  Otherwise I wouldn't have bothered. They didn't get anything – except a bloody good hiding. 

"They were German, I think east Germans, from their accent. There have been a lot of break-ins in my road.  

"I just didn’t think this would happen to me. I was only returning from a pal's place after drinking a few beers."   

Douglas, who spent three years as a policeman in Birmingham before returning to Germany to live after his marriage ended, shares his flat with a mongrel dog called Schnuffi. 

He still works, as a delivery driver, "because my pension isn't very good."   

Police in Bielefeld are still looking for his attackers.  But a spokesman said: "He had everything under control. These guys picked the wrong guy on the wrong night."


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## BernDawg (25 Oct 2006)

BOO-YAAA  Giver Grandad!!


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## Spanky (25 Oct 2006)

Now THAT is freakin awesome!!!!


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## Mike Baker (25 Oct 2006)

That is amazing!


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## Klc (25 Oct 2006)

Now thats the kind of story that brings a smile to your face.  ;D


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## geo (25 Oct 2006)

You can take the man out of the army, but you can't take the army out of the man!

CHIMO!


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## niner domestic (25 Oct 2006)

I guess this is proof that 70 is the new 40! (running very quickly to the gym now, to do some serious working out).  This is such a fabulous story.


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## 2 Cdo (26 Oct 2006)

Just brightened up my morning! ;D


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## 211RadOp (26 Oct 2006)

Put a big smile on my face. Well done sir


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## IrishCanuck (26 Oct 2006)

Haha destroyed!


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## 3rd Herd (26 Oct 2006)

A nice story to start off the day. If it was in Canada the muggers would most likely have "grandpa" in court for using excessive force. 
Judge: "Sir, you are trained to a higher standard than most civilians, therefore next time please give these four misunderstood youths your money.
           Further, you are hereby ordered to cover their hospital and physio costs."


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## gnome123 (26 Oct 2006)

Right on... Finally hooligans get what they deserve....  ;D


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## patrick666 (26 Oct 2006)

I'd like to see their faces when they read the article and find out he was ex-SAS. I had a good laugh, thanks for that.


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## 2 Cdo (26 Oct 2006)

3rd Herd said:
			
		

> A nice story to start off the day. If it was in Canada the muggers would most likely have "grandpa" in court for using excessive force.
> Judge: "Sir, you are trained to a higher standard than most civilians, therefore next time please give these four misunderstood youths your money.
> Further, you are hereby ordered to cover their hospital and physio costs."



Unfortunately 3rd I think you are 100% right in how Canadian police and courts would handle this. :'(


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## geo (26 Oct 2006)

Heh....
These hands are licenced weapons.............


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## Danjanou (26 Oct 2006)

2 Cdo said:
			
		

> Unfortunately 3rd I think you are 100% right in how Canadian police and courts would handle this. :'(



Like I said when I posted this, check the comments section after the original story. Most point out that he was lucky it happened in Germany, where the local cops praised his actions. As they note had it happened in the UK (like here) he may be up on charges while the poor misunderstood teens are given a slap on the wrist, a warm hug and told they'll have to forfeit their cookies and milk after nappy time for being naughty.  :


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## cameron (29 Oct 2006)

Now this one really made my day.  GOOD FOR HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## Petard (29 Oct 2006)

At first I really liked this story, I was saying, yeah, that "grandpa owned them punks", but then I read the comments section in the link to the actual news story.
It seems the UK has the same bent laws that we do, that you're allowed only to defend yourself with a measured and proportional response to the threat, and in this case who knows how the courts would have interpreted his actions, and ignored that of the thugs. It almost makes it sound if you have to fight at their level, and if you lose, oh well you shouldn't have fought them anyway and just given them anything they wanted.


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## axeman (29 Oct 2006)

according to him a knife was pulled in the canadian court system that would allow him the right to self defence including DEADLY force. a cop mwho has a knife pulled on him in odds like can legally put 2 rounds into the chest of the person holding it if hes a threat ... if it was me i hope i could do the same . closest thing that happpened to me like that was a friend was being rolled when i came apon the scene and interupted with a shot to his kidneys . when my friend recovered from the beating that hed been given we  "borrowed" his pants and threw him into the bar we were exiting .. let him explain his actions to the cops pantless in the middle of winter


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## Petard (29 Oct 2006)

axeman said:
			
		

> according to him a knife was pulled in the Canadian court system that would allow him the right to self defence including DEADLY force. a cop who has a knife pulled on him in odds like can legally put 2 rounds into the chest of the person holding it if hes a threat ...



Agreed, but as he said, he only thought one was going for a knife, and after he slipped the thug tried to kick him, no knife. I could well imagine some Crown attorney raking the poor old gent over the coals because of some 20/20 hindsight.
In a Canadian court I could see it going kind of like this:
Prosecution: So you only think he had a knife?
Accused (Grandpa): yes, I think so.
Prosecution: but you didn't see one?
Accused: No
Prosecution: Did your assailant try to use knife on you when you were on the ground?
Accused: No
Prosecution: And after you got up did you see anyone with a knife?
Accused: No
Prosecution: Then Sir I would have to say you had no reason to use your potentially deadly skills on these two youths! Did you?

Sound believable in Canada (or UK)?


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## axeman (29 Oct 2006)

:-[

hats off hang head yes that probaly is what would happen in canada .


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## orange.paint (29 Oct 2006)

Bet he doesn't know BigBadJohn....having actually been in and stuff.

Sorry couldn't resist.

Just goes to show repetitive training really tends to stay with a person,even after all those years.

Kudos


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