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He Tried to Stab Me. Two Weeks Later, We Were Friends.

3 crazy encounters from life on the front line of policing.

By Leon MacfaydenPublished 2 years ago 5 min read
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He Tried to Stab Me. Two Weeks Later, We Were Friends.
Photo by AJ Colores on Unsplash

I was a Police Officer for seven years. During that time, I crossed paths with the very worst, and occasionally, the best of humanity.

When I left "The Job" I was utterly lost for a long time. I have so many stories to tell which will enthral and shock you in equal measure, and I feel it is helpful to exorcise my demons by talking about these things.

Here are three stories ranging from the terrifying to the bizarre to the downright funny. You never know what is in store for you on any given day as a Police Officer.

The Knifeman Was Waiting For Me.

By Anis Rahman on Unsplash

First on my list is when my colleague and I were called to a disturbance at a tower block. One neighbour had broken down the door of the other.

These two were well known to us. Every couple of weeks, they would fight between themselves, resulting in a lengthy criminal history for both and many smashed doors.

We took the lift to the relevant floor, and as the lift door slowly opened, the suspect was waiting for us directly on the other side. This was a bit of a shock because usually suspects try and escape or carry on fighting with whomever their enemy of the day is.

Things quickly got much worse.

As I looked at the suspect, I noticed something shiny in his right hand. He had a knife. My colleague ordered him to put it down.

"Or what?" he replied. Not the answer I was hoping for.

"Or you get a face full of this," my colleague said and pulled out his CS spray.

The suspect hesitated, and I seized the moment and tackled him. We fell to the floor, with me on top. As we did, I heard a clang.

It was not the knife. Instead, it was a screwdriver.

As we continued to wrestle, I was forced to strike the suspect as he still had the knife. It seemed like each time I hit him, it caused another clang.

Another knife, another screwdriver…

This guy had loaded himself with weapons. He came prepared to kill. The fact that he was waiting for us at the lift door told me all I needed to know about his target that day.

You might think we had backup coming. We thought so too.

Unfortunately, the backup was stuck outside. You see, many tower blocks here in the UK require an access code to enter. We got in initially because someone happened to hold the door open for us.

Nevertheless, the two of us managed to subdue the suspect after a fight that seemed to take forever but really only lasted a few minutes.

We arrested him, gathered all his weapons as evidence, and ensured the "victim" was ok.

Two weeks later, I was called back to the same pair because the previous victim had now been attempting to break down the last suspect's door armed with a machete.

This time there was no fight, so I checked on my previous sparring partner. You might think he would hate me, but that would be a fundamental misunderstanding of the underclass.

He greeted me like we were friends, and we had a laugh and a catch up on what he had been doing.

You see the underclass respect violence. The fact that we overcame the would-be burglar and his assortment of weapons in a violent battle made him like me.

The Company Director Who Refused to Stop.

By Erik Mclean on Unsplash

My second story is quite different. We were on routine patrol in a marked police car when we noticed a car was speeding.

We managed to get behind the car and used our lights and sirens to signal for it to stop.

It didn't stop. But it didn't make an effort to escape either. The driver was completely ignoring us. He was also now going at the speed limit.

The weirdest police pursuit in history trundled on for a few minutes, and we realised we had to change strategy. We pulled out and positioned ourselves at the driver's side, and I shouted at him to pull over NOW.

I was surprised to see the driver looked like a respectable, middle-aged man.

My command did the trick, and he pulled over almost immediately. He confirmed he had seen us but would refuse all tickets as he had not been speeding.

I explained that we would have to go to court if he did not accept the ticket. It was nearly Christmas at the time. Did he want the hassle of all this?

It turned out he did. He was insulting, denied all wrongdoing and behaved in the arrogant way typical of middle-class company director types when the police give them instructions.

The court case began just a few days before Christmas with him pleading not guilty to speeding and careless driving.

The speeder was so arrogant that he decided to defend himself. He didn't feel that he needed a lawyer as he was a wordsmith.

Did I mention he was a Company Director?

The trial didn't last long. After he "cross-examined" my colleague and me, the judge found him guilty and ordered him to pay hundreds of pounds as a fine.

In contrast, the original ticket would have been £60 and three penalty points on his driving license.

This man's ego had gotten the better of him, and I couldn't help feeling a certain satisfaction.

The Tale of The Indian Takeaway.

By Lai YuChing on Unsplash

My final encounter could have turned out hilarious for everyone involved.

Everyone except me.

We were called to a disturbance at a tower block. You might be noticing several themes throughout these stories…

This time there were four of us.

As we approached the front door of the tower block, armed with a code for access this time, an Indian takeaway almost landed on my head.

There are several observations to be made here.

First, did you know it is not uncommon for police to get things dropped on them from tower blocks? Even a washing machine was dropped on an Officer, which would have killed him if it had connected.

Second, the takeaway had been untouched. Someone had bought a family-sized Indian meal just to try and dump it on my head.

Third, my colleagues found it hilarious. I still wonder what I would have done had it hit me. I would have still had to attend the disturbance covered in chicken tikka masala.

Maybe the suspects would have stopped fighting due to the situation's absurdity.

Sadly, there is no way to know from where the takeaway was thrown.

We considered taking it back to the station with us but knowing some peoples opinion of the police, they probably spat in it.

Conclusion.

These stories show that police work can be dangerous, frightening, frustrating, but rarely dull.

It can also be hilarious and fulfilling, giving you a chance to make a difference in someone's life.

Therefore, my next article will focus on the BEST encounters I had as an officer, from saving people from suicide to helping old ladies.

See you there.

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About the Creator

Leon Macfayden

From a police officer to a psychiatric ward and recovery.

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