Fencing coach stops robbery using his sword

New York Daily News ^ | Sept 30, 2013 | Philip Caulfield

[Kip Russell]

A Tennessee fencing coach thwarted a robbery when he chased of two goons with his sword, according to a report.

Franco Scaramuzza pulled into a Nashville shopping center last week and saw two goons pepper spray a couple and then take off with the woman's purse, local WSMV-TV reported.

"The first thing that went through my head is somebody should do something, and that's when I got really upset and disappointed with myself, because I realized I had the opportunity to do something," Scaramuzza said.

"And I didn't want to be a hypocrite who just tweeted about it."

The brave swordsman, who had just finished practice and was still in his fencing duds, grabbed his weapon from the backseat and charged toward the robbers.

"I charged towards them, holding my épée (sword) up high, and, you know, yelling at them," he told the station.

"I kept yelling throughout the entire thing. They completely panicked and dropped everything they stole and really took off."

Cops caught up to the suspects, Michael Butt and Zachary Johnson, a short while later.

Both were charged with robbery and were being held on $50,000 bond apiece.

Scaramuzza, who works as an art director, credited his fencing training for honing his crime-fighting skills.

"You have to overcome your own fears," he told WSMV-TV.

[Ramius]

Awesome. Sword ping!

[skinkinthegrass]

"And I didn't want to be a hypocrite who just tweeted about it."..
The brave swordsman, who had just finished practice and
was still in his fencing duds,grabbed his weapon from the
backseat and charged toward the robbers. talk about bravery (& fine sword skills :), good for him...
now let's watch..Is UofTn going to censure him for fighting
w/ an weapon off campus?very doubtful, This is the South.

[Little Ray]

Does that mean their nefarious plan was foiled?

[skinkinthegrass]

Awesome.thought you'd like it....

[2001convSVT]

Thank God for men like Franco Scaramuzza!

[Yogafist]

Actually it the guard looks more like an Epee.

[Mr. Lucky]

Apparently an assault foil.

These things need to be regulated.

[PapaBear3625]

A foil and an epee are quite different. Foils are very light ‘weapons’ which really couldn’t do much harm if you tried (short of putting out an eye). If you took the button off an epee, it would be quite sufficient to kill someone. Even used to strike sideways, it would be plenty painful. Epees are much, much heavier than foils, and do really count as being swords.

I would imagine that using it as a whip would break skin nicely.

[NCLaw441]

It would be kind of cool to stop a rape with a rapier...

[JPG]

Was it a ‘military-style’ assault foil?

[shibumi]

The word “epee” in French means “sword.”

It is much heavier than a foil and is the “short sword” in fencing. (The sabre being the “long sword.”)

One should pick their nits carefully.

[OldEagle]

A Butt and a Johnson!!! You can’t make this stuff up.

[onedoug]

Scaramouche

It is kind'a funny.

[The_Reader_David]

No, an épée. Of the three fencing “weapons”, and épée is the one that would be most capable of doing real damage: the blade is stiff unlike a foil or (fencing) sabre and much heavier than either of the others. A solid thrust to the abdomen from a practice épée with the rubber tip removed (or an electronic épée with the scoring-button assembly removed) could easily impale a person not wearing heavy clothing even though the end is not sharp, only of very small cross-section.

[Walkingfeather]

I like that...

[Ramius]

Actually it the guard looks more like an Epee.

I'm the story he says it is an épée.

[Freedom_Is_Not_Free]

Nice bluff. Fencing swords aren’t sharpened at the tip.

Then again, there is a reason bayonet charges used to scare the crap out of enemies. Nobody likes the idea of being impaled on a thin steel spike.

Kudos to the hero. That was a brave act.

And let this be a lesson to the hi-cap CCW crowd who always thinks you need at least one round for each perp. 99% of the time, one shot is all you need to get all the perps to flee. They don’t usually stick around to find out if you are carrying only 6 or 13 with a reload.

[1rudeboy]

It is not a sword, it is a foil.

It is not a foil, it is an épée.

[1rudeboy]

Not to mention, you can still beat the crap out of someone with an épée, without running them through.

[Kip Russell]

And let this be a lesson to the hi-cap CCW crowd who always thinks you need at least one round for each perp. 99% of the time, one shot is all you need to get all the perps to flee. They don’t usually stick around to find out if you are carrying only 6 or 13 with a reload.

I agree completely. I don't feel "under-armed" in the slightest carrying a Colt Mustang .380 that holds only "only" 6 shots.