Sussex --
A ROBBER calmly ordered a sausage before threatening a fish and chip shop owner with a knife and demanding money from the till.
Having made his order, the would-be thief, whose face was hidden under a black hoodie, suddenly jumped onto the shop counter at King Fish, in Maidenbower.
But co-owner Kwok Hung Lau bravely ignored the demand for money and managed to scare off the thug.
The failed robbery, where the criminal fled without even having got the sausage, took place at 9.15pm on October 10 at the shop in Maidenbower Square.
Mr Lau's wife, Pauline, said: "My husband thought it was just a joke at first. He did not take it seriously.
"The man jumped up and then crouched down, telling my husband to open the till and give him the money.
"It was only when he saw the man was holding a knife he reacted. It was small like one you would use to peel vegetables.
"My husband turned and walked to the back room and started shouting to make the robber think there may have been more people around who would rush out. The thief ran off after this without taking anything and he didn't come back."
Mrs Lau said the bungled crime had scared her and her husband as it was the first time anything like this has happened in the ten years they have worked at the parade of shops.
She added: "This is a nice area. I started working here in the takeaway China Garden and we opened King Fish six years ago.
"It is scary because this is the first time anything bad has happened to us. No one has tried to steal from us before."
The incident was reported to police two days later, and they are now trying to trace the culprit.
Only his eyes weren't covered by the hoodie, but he is described as white, about 5ft 7ins tall and also wearing black jeans and trainers.
Anyone with information on the crime should call Sussex Police on 101. Reported by This is 25 minutes ago.
A ROBBER calmly ordered a sausage before threatening a fish and chip shop owner with a knife and demanding money from the till.
Having made his order, the would-be thief, whose face was hidden under a black hoodie, suddenly jumped onto the shop counter at King Fish, in Maidenbower.
But co-owner Kwok Hung Lau bravely ignored the demand for money and managed to scare off the thug.
The failed robbery, where the criminal fled without even having got the sausage, took place at 9.15pm on October 10 at the shop in Maidenbower Square.
Mr Lau's wife, Pauline, said: "My husband thought it was just a joke at first. He did not take it seriously.
"The man jumped up and then crouched down, telling my husband to open the till and give him the money.
"It was only when he saw the man was holding a knife he reacted. It was small like one you would use to peel vegetables.
"My husband turned and walked to the back room and started shouting to make the robber think there may have been more people around who would rush out. The thief ran off after this without taking anything and he didn't come back."
Mrs Lau said the bungled crime had scared her and her husband as it was the first time anything like this has happened in the ten years they have worked at the parade of shops.
She added: "This is a nice area. I started working here in the takeaway China Garden and we opened King Fish six years ago.
"It is scary because this is the first time anything bad has happened to us. No one has tried to steal from us before."
The incident was reported to police two days later, and they are now trying to trace the culprit.
Only his eyes weren't covered by the hoodie, but he is described as white, about 5ft 7ins tall and also wearing black jeans and trainers.
Anyone with information on the crime should call Sussex Police on 101. Reported by This is 25 minutes ago.