Bingo players foil robbery

The drama unfolded at the Stovner Bingo parlour in Oslo Sunday night.

"A man had threatened staff with a pistol, but while we were on our way to the scene, we got word that folks in the bingo parlour had overmanned him," operations leader Even Jørstad of the Oslo Police District told Aftenposten.no.

The robber was still lying on the floor with around four or five bingo players holding him down when police arrived. "They had hung on to him for around 13 or 14 minutes," Jørstad said.

Monica Belstad who works at Stovner Bingo said the robber had threatened her colleague with a weapon. "When she started yelling, he was tackled by customers," Belstad said.

She said the robber apparently knew where the money was kept, and she described the entire episode as "extremely uncomfortable."

The robber complained of breathing problems after being pinned down by the bingo players, and police felt obliged to call an ambulance.

"This wasn't nice at all," Belstad said, adding that Stovner Bingo is likely to give the brave bingo players some sort of recognition for thwarting the robbery.

www.aftenposten.no