Casino Guard Calms Armed Teen During Early-Morning Clash

A bouncer at a Nottingham casino stopped a dangerous fight by talking to a teen with a knife for almost 20 minutes in the early morning.

Doorman Holds Off Knife-Wielding Teen with a 20-Minute Talk

The event happened outside the Grosvenor Casino on Maid Marian Way, Nottingham, United Kingdom, around 3:20 am on July 13. Nadir Mokadeh, 19, got angry after the staff turned him away because he could not prove his age. Nottingham Crown Court heard that the teen walked up to doorman Ismail Hamza, pulled a knife from his waistband, and told him to back off. People nearby said the young man seemed upset and had been drinking before this happened, reported the Nottingham Post.

Rather than backing down, Hamza kept talking to the teen, trying to cool things down even though he was in danger. The prosecutors said the doorman asked Mokadeh to lower his weapon so they could work out their problem without violence. At one point, Hamza got hold of the teen’s phone and used it as a bargaining chip, saying he would give it back once the knife was handed over.

For almost 20 minutes, Hamza and the teen stood outside the casino. Hamza tried to keep the conversation going while steering clear of a physical fight. When the police showed up, they arrested Mokadeh without any more trouble. Later on, Mokadeh would not answer questions during his interview. However, in court, he admitted he had threatened someone with a blade in public. He had no past run-ins with the law.

Judge Spares Teen Jail After Calling Knife Incident a Grave but Remediable Mistake

Judge James Sampson recognized how serious the offense was. He pointed out that the teenager had gone after a man who was just doing his job. The teen had also acted in a threatening way during the whole standoff. However, the judge also stressed the defendant’s young age and clean record when deciding on the sentence. Because of these things, the judge said they should treat this as a big mistake in judgment, not a sign that the teen was already set on a life of crime.

The court gave Mokadeh a 14-month sentence in a place for young offenders, but suspended it for 21 months. As part of this deal, he has to do 15 hours of work without pay, go to 15 sessions to help him change his ways, and pay GBP 150 ($197) toward the costs of taking him to court.

In court, the judge praised Hamza’s calm attitude, noting that the doorman’s behavior stopped the incident from turning into something much worse. Mokadeh’s defense team claimed that his regret, along with his clean record, indicated he would not face legal trouble again.