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Subscribe to RSSA Montana would-be robber breaks down in tears during crime, causing the clerk gives him a free meal to help feed his family. KTVH's Charlie Misra reports.
An apparent attempt to rob a Papa John’s pizza restaurant in Montana’s capital went awry when the would-be robber -- who was wearing a black hoodie with a red bandana covering his face -- started to cry.
According to the Helena Independent Record, a man entered the restaurant just after midnight Monday and gave the cashier a note demanding money. As the employee started to hand it over, the man broke down and confessed he was doing the deed for his wife and child.
“The clerk talked to him for a while,” Helena Police Chief Troy McGee told the Independent Record, and determined that some free pizza, wings, and soda – to go – are what he really needed.
McGee told the Independent Record that a large knife fell out of the man’s pocket while he was waiting for his food to cook. Once the food was in hand, the man left on foot.
"The clerk handled it well," McGee told NBC News. "You have to put yourself in his shoes in this situation. No one was hurt."
Police were still seeking to talk to the man, described as 5-foot-9 with a slender build, though they were not sure if charges would be brought against him, McGee said. "We'd sure hate to see him do something like this again," McGee said.
A manager at the Papa John’s pizzeria declined to comment to NBC News.
"The safety of our customers and employees is our top priority," said Merisa Sanders, director of marketing for Mountain View Pizza, which owns the local franchise. "We're pleased no one was hurt."
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His wife and kid must have really wanted some pizza and wings.
If you think about it, times are really tough with our economy and jobless/homeless people.
This guy sounds like he was on the brink of starving along with his wife and child. Sounds like he was on his last leg, would have never done anything like this and when she handed him the cash, it all sank in and he broke down realizing that he hit rock bottom.
What a terrible shame man. I feel terrible for this guy in a way.
Get ready people, with America in a downward spiral, there are going to be a lot more robberies and crime. Not just for a simple criminal, but for law abiding citizens that hit rock bottom and have nowhere else to go.
It's in human nature to survive, no matter how you do it. As long as you survive. This explains why we Humans are on top of the food chain and always will be...
Good story.
Reminds me completely of the movie Cinderella Man when Russell Crowe walks up to all the big wigs and begs for money. And telling the group as he started crying that he wouldn't be there begging if he had somewhere else to go. I cried during that scene.. Like a little baby.
This is the first real robber that my heart goes out too. But the knife he had bothers me.
I feel for this guy. I remember throwing out broccoli stakes and thinking whether or not I should freeze them in case things get worse. That was in the 1990s.
One question, though. Why isn't this guy and his family living high on the hog with their socialist entitlements? Can it be the lap of taker luxury can't be achieved on food stamps?
This guy appears to be a true father, willing to do anything to make sure his family does not go without. Sounds like the pizza shop handled the situation the best way possible. There are still plenty of good people out there:)
..yet when "illegals" enter our country looking for work and have nowhere else to turn to feed their family, they're "evil criminals".
"There's no crying in felonies!"
(Apologies to Tom Hanks)
I would've suggested that the family go and get food stamps, but... he's married to his child's mother. Wrong move. You want freebies from the gov't? Gotta have illegitimate children.
(Is "illegitimate" politically incorrect?)
RTypo -
Are you going to go there? Really? The illegals in this country have just about bankrupted the food pantries and other charities that helped people who are citizens in this country.
"WE DO NOT ASK FOR PROOF OF CITIZENSHIP" signs in all the social service offices around the country. You have such a compassionate heart, place an ad in the paper and offer your home and wallet for the first ten or twenty illegal families to show up at your door.
ga, DB
@Blake,
The knife doesn't really bother me all that much, he had so little conviction in what he was doing that he wasn't brandishing it, threatening. This is a dude at the end of his rope.
@Rtypo,
The are criminals as soon as they enter the country illegally, if they continue to commit crimes, then it just becomes a matter of how many and how bad are their crimes. Criminals should be instantly deported, same as many other countries do.
@mimi,
You are spot on. Please also note that at our local office, if you don't speak english, they will fill all of your paperwork out for you, to make sure you receive the maximum amount. They have orders from above to do so.
Thank you, Papa Johns. I will buy my next pizza from you.
Hi, Tracy.
Just got back to the thread. Yes, it's really irritating to read comments on here by people who claim that illegals can't receive social services.
Mimi
People really don't get out much it would appear!
I have said this before , cut all the social aid , and when people are literally starving this is what you will have all the time. Nothing like a starving son or daughter or wife to push someone to do the unthinkable.
It is a literal crime that we have starving people in this country, and now they want to cut off what little aid they have.
I love it when people break out of their roles and manage to act like humans. THis story made me feeel goood for some reason.
Cuz you were the perpetrator?
There is help out there for people in this guy's situation. The problem is, due to cuts in our social systems, people don't know where to turn to. Getting some funding out there for services could help avert situations like these where people act out of desperation. Still, he did pose a threat and he's lucky this particular clerk didn't have a .45 behind the counter.
Living in southern AZ near the border, I know about illegal border crossers. I guess I'm a dummy, but I was always taught we are our brother's keeper and we are ALL god's children. Hungry is hungry.
If you don't like the way things are, let your congresspeople know that GW Bush actually had a good idea: guest worker program - and then secure the border AT THE BORDER. (BTW, businesses in AZ have been fighting this; you figure out why.) While you're at it, tell your congresspeople it's wrong that this poor guy and his family are HUNGRY. Not that they would understand.
P.S. Papa John's -- do a little background on this guy. If he's ok, GIVE HIM A JOB. You claim to be a christian company; that's what jesus would do.
This news story is sad and I feel bad for the man trying to take care of his family.
.
Also, people in Mexico aren't starving. The wealthiest man in the world is from Mexico. GM just built their newest plant down there (with YOUR tax dollars)
What the illegals do are cause wages to lower, use benefits and take jobs away from Americans (not all illegals pick fruit....ask Obama's illegal uncle)
jw, Even when they are picking fruit, they're still taking away American jobs. Picking cherries and apples in Washington state was a good summer job for college kids 35 years ago.
Ok ,but we're on the rebound now! I heard the pres say it just recently
actually Creek Dog it sounds as if the guy didn't take any money. Just the food that he obviously needed. It's a really sad state of affairs when people become this desperate. Unfortunately as a society we no longer know how to get along on very little. We don't grow our own food & are too reliant on prepackaged foods. I, for one, know that a bag of potatoes, some pasta, canned beans and tomato sauce can go a long way when you are short on money and long on month. I have learned to stretch a pound of hamburger into multiple meals for my family and we eat more vegetarian than in past years. Unfortunately it is more from necessity than desire. I just wish we could share some more honest options with those who are in need of food, like food banks or even going to their church or a place of worship to ask for help.
The police just want to talk to the guy? lol, yeah, right.
another american having to do this just to feed his family,and it will only get worse. there is no help for the poor if you're two parents together,i know in the eighties when i was only bringing in 55 dollars a week and rent was 50,they would not help me because i "made too much".this is screwed up. i worked for a landlord in the ghetto and saw alot of welfare ABUSE that could be better served taking care of people willing to take care of themselves.
John Boehner, was that you? Did you hit the bottle hard, do something stupid again and cry, again?
I can't believe people are comparing this poor man to the criminals who steal jobs from people like him in the first place. America naturalizes more immigrants as citizen every year than all other nations of the world COMBINED, the vast majority of those new immigrants coming from Mexico. Those are just the legal immigrants. Immigrants from other countries in Latin America come in second and Asian immigrants come in third, but even they are dwarfed by the number we take in from Mexico. The 1990 Immigration Act has quadrupled our number of immigrants so that 1 in 10 people born in Mexico currently lives in America. Many Mexican gangs in Los Angeles just flee back over the border and wait until the cops cease to search for them before returning to kill again. Border patrol has siezed tons of assault rifles, for those who think banning such guns across America is going to make us safer. It would be nice if illegals just stopped at the border and cried "I can't go through with this! It's illegal! It's a crime!" but they don't.
Deborah Cox- Thank you. Your comment makes me feel a little better about humanity, right alongside this story.
So when someone comes to your house, with a knife, and wants you to give him something, because he doesnt have it, and then starts crying, after he has threatened you, you are just going to to give it to him...........right.
yep, times are tough,TRY THE FOOD BANK LATELY HAVE YOU?? or does that pizza and wings just stand out. Try again people. This is BS..
Pizza=Peace
Something's fishy about this....
PLANKTON! He finally got the papa johns formualer!
The only thing fishy is why does it take a place like MT for people to act humane? Why isn't it all over America?
What's wrong with it happening in Montana? In reality it does happen all over America. The media doesn't think we're interested in such things. The only reason this one made it is because the guy cried and had a knife. The media wasn't interested in the story from the kindness of the clerk angle.
Shhhh! Don't tell John.
why not? he promised 2 million free pizzas, wings and a soda too aren't gonna bankrupt him.
ill bet the clerk had to pay for the food...
The owner of Papa John's is on record as not wanting to pay for his employee's health insurance. So I wouldn't be surprised if he fired this compassionate, thoughtful employee.
You got that right he looks like a crook behind that fake smile,don't worry about being kind to people you might become a decent human being. He is just interested in bending over to Peyton.
I wouldn't doubt it they if they make her pay for the pizza, that's how greedy companies work. I work as Radiologic Technologist /Radiation Therapist was in a very bad car accident. They let me go when I was there 11years helping patients,because I went one day past my ( Family Medical Leave Act ), they can let you go to hire somebody cheaper, if their and evil company they will do that. It took me 1 year and 10 days to get another job.
Sad to say that he went to a teabagger company because his wife and kid was hungry.
Papa Johns is a very successful company. If the founder is Republican who should care? Half the country is and he's employing our fellow citizens regardless of political affiliation.
lighten up, fellla. Politics needn't pervade everything. You're in the same classas someone who willl read an article on dolphins and get riled up about eric HOlder.
mrlighthead-can't see that americans are being brought to extremes because of a bad economy,brought to this via repub and dem policies of not doing the publics will. damn ignorant partisan @!$%#!
The clerk must be a very nice person, defused what could have been a disaster. Hope the would-be robber gets some help from a food pantry, something.
More often than not, it's those who have been in that position who are the most sympathetic and willing to listen... and to help out.
I randomly paid $15 for some homeless guy's subs at Subway last week. Didn't tell him, didn't look him in the eye, just had the cashier add it to my bill and left. (She, in turn, was grateful not to have to touch the dirty, crumpled money he pulled out of his pockets--as I was leaving, I heard her utter, "Oh, God" in disgust as he began to extract what he had from his pockets.)
Now, I left my apartment in 2011 when I could no longer make rent (left=having the ethics not to get thrown out/involve law enforcement, or leave a mess behind or destruction of property), and I more or less "live" at one of my temp jobs. I make less than half of what the nation defines as the poverty level for one person, and I have to charge everything because my income barely meets my existing expenses (to maintain my vehicle's needs--gas, repairs, etc.).
But at least I HAVE the credit card space and the humanity in me to do things like this. That guy had nothing but his belongings in a discarded wicker basket.
I am glad to hear that you did that, but I think it is time that others starting paying it forward more. You are not able to get by yourself and you are able to still have the compassion to do this for others!
I am very lucky that my husband and I are finally in a good place and were prepared for this horrible downturn in the economy so I make sure that when I go grocery shopping, I always get an extra bag full for the food pantry.
I wish more people would begin to show empathy like the person at the pizzeria, we would all get along much better that way. There has been a trend up here in NH where people have been going into consignment shops and leaving either $20 or so or their unused store credit for the next person who checks out. It's nice to see and I hope it keeps spreading!
There's a tradition that was started around 100 years ago in Naples, Italy called caffè pagato where a person will pay twice for an espresso or pastry. The extra purchase is entered into a log book, and a less fortunate person can enter sometime later and ask if there is anything available, and if there is, the clerk will serve it to them.
When I was growing up, a local pizza shop in Florence, MA, called the Pizza Factory, had a somewhat similar policy. If you ordered a large pizza, and came in to pick it up, they'd give you a free pizza. If you didn't want the pizza, however, they'd leave it on the oven and would give it to anyone who couldn't afford a pizza.
I would love to see more businesses adopt a policy similar to that, as they could do so much good in their communities.
Personally, I enjoy "Random Acts of Kindness". Like taping money to a vending machine for the next person to come along. They may not specifically affect those less fortunate, but they still brighten someone's day, and hopefully they'll pay it forward someday.
Sounds something that the author Victor Hugo and Les Miserable could identify with.
Sounds like a good person pushed to the limits and not knowing where to get proper/legal assistance - don't agree with the way he accomplished it though - it would be cool if they gave him a job application along with the food, which was pretty cool of the store to do it - the cost of the items I'm sure was far less than the contents of the store till. Smart thinking by the on duty people.
Montana must really be cool. Open containers ok, 85 mph speed limits, guns in the holsters and now free Pizza. Time to move out to Big Sky......
It is really cool. Medical Marijuana too.
No, it sucks here. Open containers = illegal. Speed limits = 75 or less. No medical marijuana to speak of (legislature don't f*d up the voter approved laws). Stay away.
Besides, we don't want you.
Yea! That's the attitude to have TopJimmy! I wish everyone thought the same way. /s
TopJimmy, I am bringing all my kinfolk from Florida, are Montanoins really cool there and don't runn backgound checks??? See ya soon!
Random drug screens by employers are illegal in Montana. The state has determined them to be an invasion of privacy.
Please don't ! We do have background checks , 70 below weather in the winter , high taxes , and Grizzly bears that like the taste of humans .
Give it up Montana. lol Me thinks thou dost protest too much.
Sounds like a publicity stunt because Papa John's is owned by a Tea Bagger D- Bag and if this were true the worker is getting fired and the would be thief is still going to jail
Must be difficult going thru life as ignorant of facts as you. Check how much money Romney gave to charity. Now check Biden. Or Obama.
Aw, poor Papa will have to raise prices now of all his pizzas to make up for the free food given away.
Papa Johns is a successful business that employs many of your fellow citizens regardless of their political affiliation. Why should anyone care if the founder is Republican, Democrat, or Communist? You must have a tiny mean mind.
Doesn't matter what republicans do or don't do....people like this will always have something bad to say about them. Quit stereotyping.
Right. I'm sure Papa John set up this franchise to be robbed for publicity. [eyeroll]
Ry the Stunner...that should be: [massive eyeroll]. Gotta make Michelle O proud.
FYI, Romney did give a lot to charity. Check the numbers tho, up to 79 percent of it was to teh Mormon Church and Brigham Young University. At least Biden and Obama gave to real charities, not just already over rich churches.
Can't overestimate the value of a good wing and a good slice.
Good people at that Papa Johns.
Well, one, at least.
CreekDog- You took the words right out of my key board!! Well almost all!!
Well,....then we think on the same level.
Keep up the good work! ;-)
He was just hungry......the family too. Oh how sad can you get? I hope and pray I don't hear that the person who made him a pie got fired. Now THAT would piss me off.
He was just hungry......the family too. Oh how sad can you get? I hope and pray I don't hear that the person who made him a pie got fired. Now THAT would piss me off.
God bless that clerk!
I am impressed with the people from my home state of Montana. Had this been in most other places the man is in jail and the employee is fired. Just good people handling a bad situation.
Has it warmed up any in your area ? Brutal cold .
Hey, for free Hot wings and pizza, Thee would sell his baby brother to the circus.
Thanks to the clerk for being human and helping that man & his family out. Bet that clerk gets fired, though, for not following what ever ' company procedure ' needed to be followed.
Thee tips his Hat to you, clerk. Because of you saying screw Papas procedures, a family ate once again. Thee salutes you and your humanitarian thinking.
Thee hopes there are more out there, like you.
Yer Pal Always,
Thee Ox
clerk should be fine.....you are told to give the money to thieves when being robbed, do not be the hero.....he was just doing his job..
what happens next time this guys pockets gets empty
Good story. Bet the clerk was fired for being nice and not insisting the robber take the money too. Contrary to the statement of Ms. Sanders, the top priority of any large company is making money, not the safety of their customers and employees.
Making money is everyone's priority. If you work for free, then you are a first. Contrary to popular belief though, big companies do tell employees to give over the cash. My sister worked as a cashier for a chain family restaurant and various members of my family have worked in hotel chains, one as a manager, and they were all told to give up the cash by their employers.
While I sympathize with this man, he DID choose to commit armed robbery to feed his family. So, yes, the police should be speaking with him (and bringing some sort of charges). Also, if I was Papa John's (or any other business), I would refrain from hiring him. I'm sorry to be the spoilsport here :) but we all (mostly) have been times of being extremely poor, and yet most of us don't resort to stealing money at knifepoint. You know, because of the LAW.
when your starving the law goes out the window for almost anyone . Starvation equals death. Watching your children die of starvation will trump any law you can think of .
We refuse to help the poor , yet tell them to be law abiding . Your kidding right ?
Nobody has refused to help the poor....just look at the numbers. did you guys read the whole article? They said they were just glad nobody was hurt. Why do people always have to have a problem with and blame someone for no reason. Pessimists.
No, aster, I'm not kidding. If we let everyone who is in dire straits rob people and businesses at knifepoint without facing consequences, we will be living in a very dangerous world. I do feel sorry for him and his family, absolutely, but someone could have gotten hurt or killed in the course of this robbery attempt. Perhaps he should have gone in and cried and asked for some pizza, without the knife.
Really???
If it was up to me, this "would-be robber" would have been knocked to the ground while "crying" and waiting on his cash/pizza.
C'mon America. GROW SOME BALLS!
When your on the street without food for days and your children are starving I hope you remember that comment. Karma is a real B..ch
I know from experience that when you have children, you will do 'anything' for your babies.
Poor man. If they find out who he is, I hope they don't press any charges. I'd like to help him and his family.
If he's interested in moving to Kansas City, I've got a beautiful old house he and his family could live in, rent free. Great neighbors, excellent school up the street, safe neighborhood, lots of kids, and jobs.
Nobody "needs" that crappy food. Even if they are starving and desperate. I mean, there are no community centers in his area that could have offered assistance?
Our local food pantry is often not open during regularly scheduled times because everyone is in hard times and donations aren't keep up with demand.
daylight robbery for food in montana and a crying robber man too?
is montana a mormon territory?
before ratzinger got annointed as catholic pope, in the 1980s, ratzinger was a mormon elder.
Wiki says it's mostly Protestant but I'd say it's primarily Catholic. Less than 5% Mormon. We just do what generally is the right thing to do regardless of religion.
Helena, MT is the last best place! Neighbors helping neighbors, whenever possible.
mostly Protestant of course. There are no Western States that are mostly Catholic, except maybe New Mexico, due to 40% Hispanic population.
"The Pope used to be a Mormon elder". No, stupid. No, I'm afraid not.
I'm thinking the religion didn't play as much a part as culture. I know it sounds contradictory, but in areas of the country where the self reliance culture is strongest is where you will find the most generous people. I think that's because, although they believe in self reliance, they do understand that sometimes, you need a helping hand. The difference is that the helping hand is a temporary thing, not a lifetime career. They will expect you to pick your own ass up off the ground instead of your family being carried for generations.
Oh, just FYI Jujubefruit, a quick search reveals that the pope was archbishop of Munich and Friesing until 1982 when he resigned to be prefect for the Sacred Congregation of the Faith. A position he held until 2005. So your comment is blatently untrue. Where do you guys get this stuff, really?
Chesty, you are crazy. Not that I am all that fond of the Catholic Church, but it's big in the west. For example percentage of Catholics by state: California 28.6; Texas 27.2; Nevada 32.3; New Mexico 25.3.
I see a Javert vs. Valjean thing going on in the comments here!