Clerk refuses to give money to armed robber in Ashby

ASHBY - Security cameras captured a terrifying robbery in Ashby. The suspect with his face covered pointed a knife at a store clerk. The clerk credited his army training with helping to deescalate the potentially deadly situation.

"I told him you are not going to get anything. Period," Larry Liang said.

When the masked bandit strolled into the Low Low Convenience Store just after 7 p.m. on New Year's Day making demands, Larry Liang told him to get out.

"He got mask on, so I couldn't really hear what he's saying. I just said, 'come on get out of here, I don't want to get into trouble,'" Liang said.

Since New Year's Day, police say the same bandit has hit at least three stores in Ashby and nearby Winchendon, grabbing several hundred dollars at one stop.

So, when Liang saw the late model white GMC Sierra pull into his lot, he suspected his place was next.

"I was probably going to fight with him," Liang said.

But it never came to that, because when the suspect demanded cash, Liang grabbed a stool and hit the store panic button that alerts police as the suspect departed.

Liang says he wasn't afraid, two years in the Taiwanese army took care of that, but he admits to worrying what might happen in court if he had thrashed the guy.

"You do something and go after him, maybe he will sue me," Liang said.

But as the would-be armed robber made his exit, Liang recalls hoping that the intruder is somehow able to straighten out his life.

"I hope that he gets caught and then hopefully he learns a lesson," Liang said. "I really do."