Pastor Uses Martial Arts To Fight Off Axe-Wielding Burglar On Thanksgiving

A pastor trained in martial arts fended off a burglar who broke into his California church on Thanksgiving.

Pastor Nick Neves of First Family Church arrived at his church on Thanksgiving only to discover a window smashed and a door forced open.

Neves shared, “As I was going into the door, the perpetrator came out with a handful of our goods, and I stopped him, and I told him he was essentially under citizen’s arrest, that the police would be there, and he needs to stop and wait for them.”

He added, “So he tried to run, and I restrained him, and he began to fight with me. And so we tussled for quite a while before the cops were able to get there.”

“We ended up wrestling in the parking lot,” said Pastor Nick Neves, who has a martial arts background. https://t.co/VdePpmbImX

— TODAY (@TODAYshow) November 29, 2024

When a would-be burglar broke in to a California church on Thanksgiving day, he encountered an unexpected obstacle: A pastor, trained in martial arts and determined to defend his house of worship. https://t.co/1g5zQzAcW1

— ABC 7 Chicago (@ABC7Chicago) November 29, 2024

Per CNN:

When a would-be burglar broke in to a California church on Thanksgiving day, he encountered an unexpected obstacle: A pastor, trained in martial arts and determined to defend his house of worship.

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Pastor Nick Neves came to First Family Churchin Antioch early on Thursday morning after an alarm went off, he told CNN.When he arrived, he discovered “a smashed window and a door propped open.” A man had used an axe to break a church window and access the building, the Antioch Police Department said in a Facebook post.“As I was going into the door, the perpetrator came out with a handful of our goods, and I stopped him, and I told him he was essentially under citizen’s arrest, that the police would be there, and he needs to stop and wait for them,” Neves, who has been involved with the church since 2005, told CNN.

“And he wasn’t having that,” the pastor said. “So he tried to run, and I restrained him, and he began to fight with me. And so we tussled for quite a while before the cops were able to get there.”

MMA-trained pastor fights off dim-witted thief who targeted church on Thanksgiving https://t.co/ovCzimnVqF pic.twitter.com/1qfWEWtM4b

— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) November 29, 2024

Per Today:

A Thanksgiving burglar got more than he bargained for early Thursday morning after breaking into an Antioch church. Turns out the church’s pastor is trained in martial arts and confronted the would-be thief.

“I shouted at him to stop, and that the police were on their way, and he ran and I grabbed a hold of him and we ended up wrestling in the parking lot of the church,” Pastor Nick Neves said.

Little did the burglar know the pastor is trained in martial arts.

“I like to stay fit, and I studied in some jujitsu and kickboxing and I have a mixed martial arts background,” he said. “So it was very helpful to be able to grapple with this gentleman without having to do much harm to him.”

After 12 to 15 minutes of wrestling, the burglar ran out of steam until police arrived.

“I was able to pin him to the ground and he got up and try to get away several times, but basically just trying to wear him out because I knew I could outlast him,” Neves said.

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