pub patrons – Extraordinary footage shows several patrons at a Newcastle pub fighting back against a thief armed with a gun and a knife, including one man stabbed in the shoulder during the robbery attempt.
Several patrons at a Newcastle pub fought back against a thief armed with a gun and a knife on a Saturday night last year, with one man left with a shoulder wound after confronting the robber.
Matthew Bourke entered the Boatrowers Hotel in Stockton on that Saturday night and attempted to rob the venue. pulling out a gun as he went behind the counter and plundered the till.. The “gun” turned out to be a gel blaster.. As Bourke was confronted by one patron, that man swung a barstool at Bourke.
Bourke didn’t get past the bar area.. During the attempted robbery. he faced multiple patrons. and footage shows him fighting back while threatening to shoot another man with the “gun”.. He then stabbed the patron in the shoulder.. The injured patron was not deterred. throwing another stool at Bourke before the thief tried to make a getaway with cash in his hands.
As Bourke moved away, he then confronted a woman who was filming the altercation.. Bourke brandished the weapon he claimed was a gun to get behind the till again. but it was still the gel blaster.. He was heard saying. “Give me that phone!”—and in the struggle that followed. the woman fought back. causing Bourke to drop some of the cash.. He fled when another patron approached with a barstool.
Local residents quickly caught up. Bourke was then chased down and tackled to the ground by several locals. The patron who was stabbed did not suffer any long-term injuries, while Bourke was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment for the robbery attempt.
The sequence appears to repeat in the footage: Bourke uses the gel blaster to press forward during the attempted robbery. patrons respond with barstools and direct confrontation. and each time he tries to take cash and move on. he is met again by someone nearby—before locals finally chase him down and tackle him to the ground.
Newcastle Stockton Boatrowers Hotel Matthew Bourke pub robbery gel blaster barstool assault sentencing stabbing