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How to prevent an assault for robbery

The self-defense scenario

We are alone in the street and we see in the distance, on our path, one or more unknown people:

In physical and / or numerical advantage
Who look at us from afar and sideways, with quick and elusive glances (or looking everywhere but in our eyes’ direction)
Who have irregular movements (fast, nervousness, etc.)
Which in some way trigger suspicion (eg. we may have already seen one or more of them around us a few minutes before)

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

The possible threat

What it could be:

It could be nothing (and in 99% of the cases it will really be anything)
It could be the premise for an aggression against us (for robbery, rape, revenge, sadism, etc.)

A note by Master Kongling – Instinct is often wrong but its increased sensitivity can help us avoid most of the possible dangers we may run into. So, what is the right reaction to these (often inconsistent) signals? We do not have to ignore them, we have to take them into consideration but only in terms of possibilities.

What to avoid

What in any case is wrong:

Demonstrate panic and / or lose control
Deal with the situation aggressively (eg. verbally attacking the potential offenders)

What to do

A few useful tips:

First of all, a not secondary thing is to increase our level of alertness, no matter how engaging what we were doing or thinking might be (our concentration must be directed towards the scenario in which we find ourselves)
Now that we are focused, let’s verify the presence of people around us (especially behind us); by doing this we do not have to turn our head (or worse eyes only), this shows fear
Let’s simply stop at a safe distance (enough to guarantee a reasonable space / time to eventually escape)
Let’s pretend to look at the phone or a piece of paper in our pockets / handbag and let’s exploit the occasion to scan at 360° around us; let’s spot all the possible suspects and let’s check their reaction
In the meantime, we have to check the scenario for any improvised defensive tools (read What to evaluate when choosing an improper weapon) that could give us an overwhelming advantage over the potential attackers (eg. a solid piece of wood, a metal tube or a stone) but without picking it
Evaluated the potential aggressors, let’s then start to walk in the opposite direction to which the potential danger comes (without running)

The reaction of the potential aggressors

If they do not follow us:

The criticality may already be over
We were probably wrong or the thieves realized they had lost the surprise factor and gave up (which is by no means uncommon)
In the future (if we realized that the threat was really real and if possible / reasonable), we should avoid that path (or at least not alone, not at the wrong time)

If instead, as we move away, they start to move toward us:

If they are not running, we have to reach at a fast pace (ready to run but walking, let’s not waste precious energy) the nearest crowded area (eg. a pub) or safe place (eg. our car); let’s forget our initial path and goals (if it is night let’s search for the light, if it is daytime let’s search for the wider streets and buildings, no car roads or industrial buildings)
At this point, there is probably something really wrong and indeed, perhaps they are more determined attackers than the average (we made them understand that we have discovered them but they persist in their intent); at this moment it makes sense to try another act of deterrence; let’s imagine we have a gun, a knife or pepper spray and ask ourselves rationally, if we really had it with us, where we would have put it (in a pocket, purse, etc.); once this is done let’s place a hand in the area we have chosen and let’s position our arm as if we had to perform a quick extraction (thus assuming an evidently unnatural pose); they will surely see it; if despite this they continue to follow us, or we are completely wrong (it is possible) or we are dealing with decidedly dangerous people
In any case, let’s check if the increase in our walking speed determines an equal or superior increase of pace in our potential aggressors; if they do not accelerate, let’s “stay in the game”, if they do, let’s move to the next step

If the aggressors increase their speed or chase us by running:

All the doubts vanish, we are no more in a generic scenario, we are in a self-defense one
If possible we have to try to rapidly pick our improvised weapon (but we do not have to face them)
Let’s move away from them choosing the fastest and risk-free possible path (no obstacles)
If possible let’s choose a path that we know (in order to avoid driving ourselves to a dead end)
While we flee, we must immediately seek assistance, let’s ask for help aloud and repeatedly (so as to reach as many people as possible)
Let’s say in the highest possible voice “Help! Call the police!” (“Help!” and screams alone can be easily misunderstood / ignored); it would be not wrong even to howl “Fire! Fire! Help!” in certain cases (as Somerset says in the movie Seven, by David Fincher)
We can also make the aggressors’ path more difficult by leaving behind us various obstacles (for example dropping bins, but without slowing down our escape)
If we manage to lose our pursuers and if we have no doubts about the concreteness of the threat, we immediately inform the police of what happened
If they run after us and gain ground we must already know if we will be able to lose them or reach our goal; not all people can maintain a parkour-style explosive run pace for an extended time (usually less than 1 minute); this kind of calculation must be prepared while we are reading this guide, not in the moment of danger and the reason is that (in an extreme situation) it is better to use our energies to fight than to waste them running nowhere
Even if we cannot escape, we have to try to avoid physical confrontation at any cost (read Best martial arts for self-defense), let’s implement the S.A.F.E. method (read Personal defense: the S.A.F.E. method)
If nothing works we have to fight, possibly using an overwhelming advantage like the previously mentioned improper weapon (read Improper weapons in a real situation)

What to do if we have to go back to that place

If the criticality has occurred around an area through which we must forcibly pass again (eg. in front of our house) and it is rather possible a reiteration, when we will return there we will need to guarantee us some crucial advantages:

We should always be accompanied by someone, ideally 3-4 people (normally, the mere presence of a group is enough to dissuade most of the bad intents)
We will have to perfectly know the area (where to go, when, why and how)
Before arriving at the critical point, we could call a trusted person to inform him / her about where we are; let’s tell him / her our specific position and the possibility of having to promptly call the police (let’s maintain the telephone active)
Let’s exploit our past experience to try to spot the eventual aggressors from a distance and in case, let’s go away or let’s directly ask for the intervention of the police
Last but not least, we can also evaluate the option to bring with us a deterrent (legal) defensive tool; the important is to choose something that we perfectly master, there is nothing dumber than carrying a weapon that will be used against us due to our incompetence (in which case it is really better not to have it with us at all)
…

Final notes

A few conclusive reflections:

Let’s never forget that nothing is more important than life and that in any kind of aggression, it is always at stake; rather than risk facing a physical confrontation, it is better to not be scared by doing things like taking a few more steps, losing some time, disturbing a family member / a friend or giving the robber our money
Let’s never sell our life for what we have in our wallet, even if we had $10,000 in cash (??), it would be a very bad deal to trade them for our lives (let’s not belittle ourselves so much)
It must also be said that in the case of a robbery, if we are not skilled in negotiation (read /// Subscribe (it's free!) or Login to see this content ///Self-defense: negotiation[/rectrict]), we should also not try to start an aggressive verbal confrontation (it could, in fact, trigger a desire for psychological revenge, usually absent in a robber); if we do not know what to say, let’s simply remain silent
If everything fails and the objective is not our values, let’s try to gain time, if we have no other options, time is our last friend before our fists
In general, we can choose to live without self-limitations and ignore all the potential risks or we can live in a state of serene alert and prevent a large part of them (read Constant attention: what is and how it works)
…

In-depth video courses

Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu Exercises – All the fundamental practices to develop real martial skills
Self-defense basics: how to – Everything you basically need to protect yourself and who is with you
Self-defense: not violent self-preservation – Methods to solve self-defense scenarios without recurring to violence

In-depth articles

Self-defense: aggression in front of a supermarket – A situation of self-defense caused by a car quarrel
Self defense: how to behave – A few tips on how to intelligently face a self-defense situation

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Have you ever suffered a robbery? What happened?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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