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[Pochacco]

First time something like this has happened to me.

I'm walking home from my bus-stop (~10pm). Some black dude runs by me, lightly pushing me out of the way, I don't think anything of it. But then he stops. I turn around, see 2 other black dudes cornering me in. Not good.

At this point, I'm in a bit of disbelief. WTF are these kids (they looked 16-18ish) doing?

One of them says "give me your stuff". I have an iPod in my pocket, an IBM ThinkPad in my backpack, Sony earphones (I'm guessing this is what they saw first), Cellphone, and of course my wallet. Fuck this. I say something like "I don't want any trouble" while looking for escape routes.

It's been snowing a lot here in Toronto lately. So although there were 'only' 3 of them, I was pretty much surrounded on the sidewalk. I couldn't run perpendicular to the sidewalk - too much snow in the way. So 2 of the fuckers, whose hands were behind their backs, say something along the lines of "I have a gun - I'll pop you."

I was 99% sure that these guys were bluffing.

One of the guys behind me kicks me in the back, I lunge forward, push the guy in front of me out the way, and bolt. I run for about 20 seconds. That was a scary 20 seconds. "Please don't really have guns"..."I wonder how well a ThinkPad stands up to a bullet"..."no headshots please". I slow down, look behind me, and they're chasing me. Fuck this. I bolt again and don't look back until I turn at a corner - about 2 minutes later.

So yea. After that, I made sure they weren't following me and I go home. When I got home, I thought about getting my roommates and my aluminum hockey stick to find these douches. But I'm hungry. And someone has to post the story on GAF!

What would you have done?
Anyone who asks "why didn't you fight back?" has to realize that it was 3-on-1, I was in dress clothes, winter attire, had a laptop in my backpack, and grocery bags in hand.

It was probably stupid for me to bolt - I was pretty sure that they didn't really have guns. But yea. I wasn't going to let them have the mushrooms I bought for dinner.

</rant>

 

[demi]

Well as long as you are ok all is good!

I was worried about you my love!

 

[olimario]

Scary stuff... way to hold on to your junk.
And yeah, you made the right choice not going after them. If they had a gun I doubt they would have shot you then, but if you start something then I'll bet they would.

 

[aoi tsuki]

Just glad you got out unharmed. i would've bolted too with the odds stacked against me. One-on-one, even against a knife, i've stood and fought (happened a couple of times). Neither time did the attackers look like the guy in the pizza video, though.

 

[Celicar]

If you look or act like this guy, you were probably looking for trouble. :lol

 

[number386]

Scary stuff, it probably was stupid that you ran. You can always get another ipod, laptop, etc... but death is permanent. There is a recent homicide mugging in NY where a group of teens around 18 killed an aspiring actress. She gave them her purse and was pissed about it and said "what are you going to shoot me" and they did. Her fiance was with her and they shot her down like a dog =(.

 

[aoi tsuki]

If you look or act like this guy, you were probably looking for trouble. :lol

Not funny. But if that was him, he would've been raped.

 

[Diablos]

Glad to hear you are ok. Perhaps you should walk a different route for the next few weeks so you don't run into your new friends again. That is something you should really worry about, I'm sure they got pissed that you managed to escape. Who knows, they could be waiting for you tomorrow?

 

[calder]

"no headshots please"

Lucky for you none of them had a lamer aim-bot script.


But seriously, glad you're ok. Scary stuff. Did you call the police? You really should, the cops need to at least know someone almost got mugged and that the kids claimed to have a gun. I'm sure if it's a problem in your area they'll look around if you have a half-decent description of them, but unless they're total retards they went somewhere else. And that might help if you're worried about them spotting you some other night again.

 

[kumanoki]

I had a similar experience when I was about 19. I was going over to visit my girlfriend (now wife) after work. It was about one or two in the morning. I had pulled in about two hundred dollars that night waiting tables, and I wanted to see Christy before I made the 45 minute drive back to my parents' house. I pull into her neighborhood, and parked in her driveway. A car pulled to the curb, and out jumped this big guy. He staggered over to me, saying he wanted to talk to me. He was obviously very drunk. As soon as he got close enough, he took a swing at me, and I bolted. He actually pulled a gun on me. I stopped, and nothing will pull the fight out of you like staring down the wrong end of a gun. When he got over to me, he just wanted to let me know that he was pissed off at me for cutting him off on the highway. (WTF) I told him that I lived right there and wanted to go home. He was acting haughty, like he didn't believe I'd walk right up to the door and ring the bell. Christy and her father came out and Christy's dad talked him down off the porch and back into his car. No money stolen. No shots fired. Just extremely freakin' lucky.

 

[DopeyFish]

what part of toronto was this?

 

[Boogie]

Nice job getting away.

What would I have done? Hmm, well, if it wasn't so snowy and slippery out (STUPID CITY DOESN'T CLEAR OFF THE PATHWAYS IN QUEEN'S PARK, ahem) then I probably would have started swinging at one of them to open up an escape route. (I would likely have assumed that if they had a gun, they wouldn't have been hiding it behind their backs :lol)

But yeah, with the streets slick, it'd be real easy to slip, whether throwing down, or just trying to bolt.

 

[Pochacco]

Thanks guys. Appreciate the concern.

My life flashed before my eyes.

I live in Scarborough. Warden & Steeles area.

 

[BigJonsson]

WTF!

This is like the 4th thread about an almost mugging/mugging in TO in the past week and a half

What the shit is going on

 

[GG-Duo]

:-O

Oh man.
Y'know, it's not the first time I heard about muggings near Bamburgh. (I remember reading Gwampa's roommate blog about it)
It's probably those damn kids that hang around the McDonalds, man.

But since you pretty much only have one way to walk home - how are you going to deal if you encounter them again?

 

[BigJonsson]

Thanks guys. Appreciate the concern.

My life flashed before my eyes.

I live in Scarborough. Warden & Steeles area.

What high school did you go to?

 

[Mugen]

Scarborough = ghetto.

And no I don't think those kids got guns... but then again, I saw in the news how there's some kids who just shot randomly and hit 2 innocent bystanders which is jsut crazy. In Canada where there's really strict rules about guns, that's preety much unheard of. But oh well good you're fine man.

 

[ShadowRed]

Dude call the Cops and report this, even if you can't ID them. A lot of times even when people get mugged they don't report it and these types of guys get away far longer than they should doing this stuff. If you report it it lets the Cops know what's going on and maybe they will increase patrols in the area and catch these creeps.

 

[Chipopo]

Thanks guys. Appreciate the concern.

My life flashed before my eyes.

:lol:lol:lol

Glad you're okay! Muggings are fucking scary.

 

[Wellington]

Generally that's the right way to diffuse it, don't act aggressive in anyway and try and get out as best you can. A friend of mine was stabbed and killed in a mugging recently, knowing him I know he tried to solve things the wrong way, heh.

Just uh, don't carry so much expensive shit on you. :lol

Never been mugged myself, I am pretty sure I would stupidly try and fight my way out.

 

[peedi]

Why would you even consider fighting back or even running? Is your life worth whatever was in your possession? If they REALLY had guns(they obviously didn't), running wouldn't have done any good. If it came down to it, you're in a better position fighting someone with a gun than running from them. I wouldn't have even said, "I don't want any trouble." I would have surrendered everything I had. Fuck it. My life is worth more than a fucking Ipod. Jesus.

 

[peedi]

Just glad you got out unharmed. i would've bolted too with the odds stacked against me. One-on-one, even against a knife, i've stood and fought (happened a couple of times). Neither time did the attackers look like the guy in the pizza video, though.

I'd rather fight someone armed with a gun instead of a knife. Either way, the odds are against you, but you're in a better position if they have a gun.

 

[Boogie]

I'd rather fight someone armed with a gun instead of a knife. Either way, the odds are against you, but you're in a better position if they have a gun.

Umm, what?

 

[peedi]

Boogie, trust me. Try fighting someone when you're armed with a gun. Not that I have. Seriously, guns aren't designed to be wielded while fighting in close quarters. You're asking to have it taken away from you. Look, I know what I'm talking about. Ask anyone from the hood if they'd rather fight someone with a gun or a knife. The responses will overwhelmingly side with the former.

 

[Boogie]

Boogie, trust me. Try fighting someone when you're armed with a gun. Not that I have. Seriously, guns aren't designed to be wielded while fighting in close quarters. You're asking to have it taken away from you. Look, I know what I'm talking about. Ask anyone from the hood if they'd rather fight someone with a gun or a knife. The responses will overwhelmingly side with the former.

Geez, didn't mean to call into question your "street cred"

But I'd still rather take my chances against someone with a knife than a gun.

 

[aoi tsuki]

I'd rather fight someone armed with a gun instead of a knife. Either way, the odds are against you, but you're in a better position if they have a gun.

i haven't fought someone with a gun, but the only advantage i could see is with close combat. A gun can be easily blocked since the opening at the barrel is the only part of the gun that would cause the most harm, whereas a knife is essentially dangerous from all angles. i've also read that if you can escape an attacker with a gun, you have a good chance of not getting show given the recoil of the gun in addition to the fact that most attackers will hold it with one hand and aren't the best aims.

The first time i was attacked with a knife i got cut on the side and palm of my hand blocking the attack and with the struggle to get the knife. i didn't even feel it at the time. i'd rather not even think about it, or being attacked with a gun.

 

[Particle Physicist]

First time something like this has happened to me.

I'm walking home from my bus-stop (~10pm). Some black dude runs by me, lightly pushing me out of the way, I don't think anything of it. But then he stops. I turn around, see 2 other black dudes cornering me in. Not good.

At this point, I'm in a bit of disbelief. WTF are these kids (they looked 16-18ish) doing?

One of them says "give me your stuff". I have an iPod in my pocket, an IBM ThinkPad in my backpack, Sony earphones (I'm guessing this is what they saw first), Cellphone, and of course my wallet. Fuck this. I say something like "I don't want any trouble" while looking for escape routes.

It's been snowing a lot here in Toronto lately. So although there were 'only' 3 of them, I was pretty much surrounded on the sidewalk. I couldn't run perpendicular to the sidewalk - too much snow in the way. So 2 of the fuckers, whose hands were behind their backs, say something along the lines of "I have a gun - I'll pop you."

I was 99% sure that these guys were bluffing.

One of the guys behind me kicks me in the back, I lunge forward, push the guy in front of me out the way, and bolt. I run for about 20 seconds. That was a scary 20 seconds. "Please don't really have guns"..."I wonder how well a ThinkPad stands up to a bullet"..."no headshots please". I slow down, look behind me, and they're chasing me. Fuck this. I bolt again and don't look back until I turn at a corner - about 2 minutes later.

So yea. After that, I made sure they weren't following me and I go home. When I got home, I thought about getting my roommates and my aluminum hockey stick to find these douches. But I'm hungry. And someone has to post the story on GAF!

What would you have done?
Anyone who asks "why didn't you fight back?" has to realize that it was 3-on-1, I was in dress clothes, winter attire, had a laptop in my backpack, and grocery bags in hand.

It was probably stupid for me to bolt - I was pretty sure that they didn't really have guns. But yea. I wasn't going to let them have the mushrooms I bought for dinner.

</rant>

lies! all lies!!! black people in canada ??! bahh..

 

[masud]

I'd much rather fight someone that had a knife. Sure theres a greater chance that I would get hurt but it's much harder to kill some one with a knife.

 

[karasu]

ok I'm from the projects, and I'd rather fight someone with a knife than a gun. I don't really understand the logic behind preferring to fight a dude with a gun. I've been stabbed, and still won the fight. I've been shot at a few times , and thank heaven I wasn't hit. :/ In general, if someone is wielding a knife, they'll be no more proficient with that than they are with empty hands. If they're slow an uncoordinated, a knife isn't gonna make them faster and more precise (ok if you factor in the additional range, it'll add a little + to both).

P.S> Glad you're safe Pochacco.

 

[ZombieSupaStar]

god bless ohio and its concealed firearms in public laws
































unless....

 

[demi]

I hope I don't go near your part of town, Mr. Roy C. Start!

 

[NetMapel]

ok I'm from the projects, and I'd rather fight someone with a knife than a gun. I don't really understand the logic behind preferring to fight a dude with a gun. I've been stabbed, and still won the fight. I've been shot at a few times , and thank heaven I wasn't hit. :/ In general, if someone is wielding a knife, they'll be no more proficient with that than they are with empty hands. If they're slow an uncoordinated, a knife isn't gonna make them faster and more precise (ok if you factor in the additional range, it'll add a little + to both).

P.S> Glad you're safe Pochacco.

Well, the fact is... you can block a person's fist and just suffer from bruses and some pain. But if somebody swing a knife at you, you have to be very careful at either dodging it or block his arm. Now, for most people, the shock of seeing a knife coming right at you is able to make you freeze, or quickly use your arm to block, in both cases you will be severely injured. As for blocking the person's arm, it's easier said than done, even if you have seen it done in movies a million times.

 

[Boogie]

Well, the fact is... you can block a person's fist and just suffer from bruses and some pain. But if somebody swing a knife at you, you have to be very careful at either dodging it or block his arm. Now, for most people, the shock of seeing a knife coming right at you is able to make you freeze, or quickly use your arm to block, in both cases you will be severely injured. As for blocking the person's arm, it's easier said than done, even if you have seen it done in movies a million times.

Are you speaking from experience, NetMapel? 'cause I think karasu is, so I don't really see how you could be enlightening him on any point here

 

[NetMapel]

No, I am not speaking from experience, but it is rather easy for me to imagine what my reaction would be. Perhaps he is just extremely agile, but I really doubt the mass population are able to react fast enough to counter a knife stab easily. Otherwise, you wouldn't be hearing on the news every day on X being killed or stabbed on local street... etc =P

 

[NLB2]

From three feet away an attacker with a gun will shoot you if your attacker moves his finger half an inch. You can't get out of the way in time, you can't block it. From three feet away an attacker with a knife will stab you if he moves his arm 2 and a half feet.

I'd much rather fight the guy with the knife.

 

[Boogie]

No, I am not speaking from experience, but it is rather easy for me to imagine what my reaction would be. Perhaps he is just extremely agile, but I really doubt the mass population are able to react fast enough to counter a knife stab easily. Otherwise, you wouldn't be hearing on the news every day on X being killed or stabbed on local street... etc =P

Okay, true. I was just wondering where you were coming from because the talk of facing a knife was made in comparison with facing a gun. Sure a knife is scary, but karasu was talking about it in comparison to someone with a gun.

And second, karasu is a badass dude, so yeah, he probably has that advantage over the average person who might find themselves in such a situation

 

[NetMapel]

From three feet away an attacker with a gun will shoot you if your attacker moves his finger half an inch. You can't get out of the way in time, you can't block it. From three feet away an attacker with a knife will stab you if he moves his arm 2 and a half feet.

I'd much rather fight the guy with the knife.

For some strange reason, I am exceptionally afraid of people throwing knives... so if you are three feet away from your attacker, chances are good that the attacker will throw his knife at you and hit you... at least that's just my little hypothesis which I do not want to be "tested".

Boogie, in my opinion, knife can also be used as a distance-weapon (see above for my explanation). But I suppose in the very end, I would rather face somebody with a knife than a gun...

 

[NLB2]

For some strange reason, I am exceptionally afraid of people throwing knives... so if you are three feet away from your attacker, chances are good that the attacker will throw his knife at you and hit you... at least that's just my little hypothesis which I do not want to be "tested".

:lol :lol :lol

 

[karasu]

Well, the fact is... you can block a person's fist and just suffer from bruses and some pain. But if somebody swing a knife at you, you have to be very careful at either dodging it or block his arm. Now, for most people, the shock of seeing a knife coming right at you is able to make you freeze, or quickly use your arm to block, in both cases you will be severely injured. As for blocking the person's arm, it's easier said than done, even if you have seen it done in movies a million times.

huh? He said he would rather fight someone with a gun than fight someone with a knife. Meaning he won't have to defend against fists, but bullets. You're right though, I got stabbed by mistiming a Pak Sao haha. But eh, I was only 14 back then. Blocking an arm is twenty times easier than blocking a fist simply because you have more target. You should never really "block" a fist, if anything you'd use gunting of some sort.

 

[Socreges]

I didn't know you had moved to Toronto, so I was just thinking "Since when are there black people in Edmonton??"

Anyway, glad you're ok. That must have been surreal.

Thanks guys. Appreciate the concern.

My life flashed before my eyes.

:lol

 

[Dan]

I've recounted the story a few times here at GAF, but yeah, I was mugged at gunpoint on one of my last nights in London during a study abroad trip. I went out for food around 10pm and while walking back some short black fellow starts pestering me for change and then calling me a racist for not giving him any. Then he says he's got a gun and wants all my cash. For a second or two I consider just punching him in the face, but then he actually flashed the gun and I recalled that I only had a mere 20 pounds on me. I was more angry about being inconvenienced than anything. I'm standing there going, "all I wanted was some goddamned dinner." Who knows if it was real or loaded, but for 20 pounds I really didn't care to find out. Then he wanted me to sit down on a bench with him, and I just said "I'd rather not," turned and walked away, hoping he wouldn't follow, which he didn't.

Stupid England and their whole 'restaurants don't stay open past 8 o' clock' bullshit, forcing me to walk through a shadier part of town just to find ANY food at 10pm.

Kind of a weak story, but yeah, that's my little mugging story.

 

[Boogie]

For some strange reason, I am exceptionally afraid of people throwing knives... so if you are three feet away from your attacker, chances are good that the attacker will throw his knife at you and hit you... at least that's just my little hypothesis which I do not want to be "tested".

Well, I can't truly speak on the psychology of a knife-wielding attacker, but I would imagine that throwing the knife would be the last thing someone is likely to do. I mean, there's the chance of it hitting with the handle or missing, and then the guy wouldn't even have the knife anymore. Wouldn't be the smartest move, I would think.

 

[karasu]

Agreed. Save that shit for Jack Burton.

 

[aoi tsuki]

And second, karasu is a badass dude, so yeah, he probably has that advantage over the average person who might find themselves in such a situation

Yeah, i thought of that too, although it makes him a bigger target.

Thinking about this makes me think of when i was attacked. i'm just lucky both times were during the day, when i could clearly see the weapons. Hell, considering the fact that i don't have much fight experience or real strategy, i'm just lucky period. You just don't know what could happen sometimes.

 

[Pochacco]

So yea...I called the police, they came, and I chatted with them for about an hour.
I couldn't really provide many details at all. I was in too much of a WTF state to actually have the common sense to scan these guys' faces and stuff. And I should've called right away so that they would've had a chance of nabbing these idiots...but ah well. The police seemed really appreciative that I actually called them. They said that most people don't.

Terrible thing to say, but if anything like this happens to you guys, call the police asap - even if everything is ok.

Sigh.
Jack Bauer would be disgusted at me. I should've went Bauer Hour on their asses

 

[Boomer]

So let me get this straight. You were carrying all that shit in your backpack, had headphones on, were carrying groceries, and you still outran them?


I plan on getting my concealed weapons license when I can afford a weapon, specifically for situations like this.

 

[Loki]

One thing to keep in mind is that when someone (a common street thug, that is) has a knife, you pretty much only have to worry about the knife-- it's highly unlikely that they're gonna bust out some 1-2 combinations of jabs and knife strikes.


Still, I'd be much more afraid of a gun than a knife, because unless there's no escape, I'm not hanging around to do battle against someone wielding a weapon of any sort. Can't run from a gun, though, if the person's intent on shooting rather than merely psychological intimidation. I'd just run from everything else-- no shame in that. And they won't catch me unless I somehow go the "generic horror movie" route and mysteriously fall down, enabling them to catch up.


Against a single attacker with a gun in close quarters, I'd probably try to fight, believe it or not. I've heard too many stories in NY of people giving attackers what they want and still getting shot just for the hell of it. No thank you, ma'am. Thankfully, I live in a decent neighborhood, generally don't venture out to seedy areas alone late at night, and have been told that I look intimidating, so let's hope it never comes to that.

 

[calder]

So let me get this straight. You were carrying all that shit in your backpack, had headphones on, were carrying groceries, and you still outran them?

No shit, Poch I'm going to put a call into Athletics Canada and have the 4x200 coach stop by your place. :lol

 

[evil ways]

I was mugged once when I was about 14, by 3 guys. I was walking home from the mall at around 8pm and almost the same story, guy walks by me and asks if I can tell him the time. Not really thinking I just look at my watch and tell him the time, then the guy asks me where I'm going and that's when it really hit me that I was in deep shit. I look behind me and sure enough there's 2 more guys already reaching for me so I'm trapped.

They grabbed my watch, a bag of comics I had purchased at the mall, a silver chain necklace to which the guy told me to either take it off or he was gonna rip it off my neck, and took about $30 cash. When I got home I was pissed but glad that they only took what they took and didn't steal my shoes or the entire wallet with my ID.

 

[Pochacco]

So let me get this straight. You were carrying all that shit in your backpack, had headphones on, were carrying groceries, and you still outran them?

I don't know whether or not they were putting a lot of effort into chasing me down. I just saw them coming. So I bolted. I'm a pretty fast runner - dress shoes and inches of snow and all

I don't wtf I was doing worrying about my groceries though. I should've just gave them to them when they said "give me your stuff".

*shrug*