Girl uses ju-jitsu to fend off knifeman in Otley park
4 September 2019
Alex Jeanguillaume said she had no choice but to use her martial arts training
A schoolgirl used her ju-jitsu skills to fight off a knifeman who tried to rob her and a friend during a spate of attacks in a park near Leeds.
Alex Jeanguillaume, 15, grabbed hold of the suspect and threw him to the ground when the pair were threatened in Wharfemeadows Park in Otley.
She said: "In these situations we're taught how to defend ourselves."
The attack was one of three knifepoint robberies which happened in the park on Friday, West Yorkshire Police said.
The student, who has been a member of the town's ju-jitsu club since the age of five, was with her friend Edwin Tosney when they were confronted and told to hand over their phones.
The teenager was with her friend in this shelter when they were threatened
She refused and the knifeman pulled the weapon as if he was about to stab her friend.
The teenager said: "I grabbed hold of his arm and shoulder and shoved him to the floor and we ended up grappling on the floor.
"He was shouting to let him go and he would run off. I was trying to hold on to him but he broke free and managed to escape."
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The youngster said her training had taught her to run off in such situations but because the pair were in an enclosed space she was forced to act.
"We are always taught to stay clam in such situations and I feel like if I didn't have my [training] I wouldn't have been able to prevent my friend from being stabbed."
Police said a 17-year-old boy and a 23-year-old man were threatened in two other attacks in the park on the same night.
They are looking at whether all three are linked to another robbery on a 19-year-old and his friend in Pool Road last Thursday.
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