A suspect pickpocket has been handed the cold shoulder after confronting him in front of a martial arts champion at London's Borough railway station.
Ivan Skoko, 29, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, sprang into action when he heard a woman scream as the alleged thief was attempting to steal her phone. Within seconds, Skoko had tackled the man to the ground, whereupon he demanded to know who was responsible for the crime and prevented him from escaping.
The video footage shows Skoko kneeling over the subdued suspect, telling him "I don't want to stab you, bro" as he lies on the floor beneath his knee. It is a stark contrast to the scenes often depicted in films of violent confrontations between thugs and law enforcement officers.
Skoko, who hails from Croatia, said that after winning gold at the British Open earlier this year for men's ultra-heavyweight martial arts competition, he realized there was little use calling on police when faced with crimes as common as theft. He described how his bike was stolen in 2018 and how a call to the authorities only left him feeling frustrated.
"Officer told me, 'unfortunately you'll never see your bike again'," Skoko said, revealing that he eventually took matters into his own hands by training for combat.
Skoko stated that, since then, he has been fighting with this skill for about five years. He also estimated that he has clashed with more than ten criminal offenders.
Ivan Skoko, 29, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, sprang into action when he heard a woman scream as the alleged thief was attempting to steal her phone. Within seconds, Skoko had tackled the man to the ground, whereupon he demanded to know who was responsible for the crime and prevented him from escaping.
The video footage shows Skoko kneeling over the subdued suspect, telling him "I don't want to stab you, bro" as he lies on the floor beneath his knee. It is a stark contrast to the scenes often depicted in films of violent confrontations between thugs and law enforcement officers.
Skoko, who hails from Croatia, said that after winning gold at the British Open earlier this year for men's ultra-heavyweight martial arts competition, he realized there was little use calling on police when faced with crimes as common as theft. He described how his bike was stolen in 2018 and how a call to the authorities only left him feeling frustrated.
"Officer told me, 'unfortunately you'll never see your bike again'," Skoko said, revealing that he eventually took matters into his own hands by training for combat.
Skoko stated that, since then, he has been fighting with this skill for about five years. He also estimated that he has clashed with more than ten criminal offenders.
! It's all about de-escalation and taking control without resorting to violence, you know? I mean, who needs police when you've got a martial arts black belt on the scene 
. Seriously though, it's great to see someone taking matters into their own hands when they feel like the system isn't working for them. Ivan's story is super relatable, especially after hearing about his bike getting stolen and how frustrating it was 
. It just goes to show that self-defense skills can be a game-changer in situations like this! 
. skoko seems like a total legend 
!
. I mean, who just jumps into action like that? But what really gets me is that he didn't even call the police, which makes total sense if you think about it. Like, why bother calling them when you know they're not gonna help? 
It's not like they can magically solve every problem. And this guy's been through a similar experience himself, so I get why he did what he did. He's basically saying that sometimes you just have to take matters into your own hands. Makes sense to me! 
I'm telling you, something fishy's going on here. This guy Skoko, he's like a vigilante or something! 
First, his bike gets stolen and he's all frustrated, then he decides to train for combat? It sounds too perfect. What if the cops were just waiting for someone like him to step up and take matters into their own hands? I mean, who needs an entire police force when you've got a martial arts black belt on speed dial? 
And what's with the "I don't want to stab you, bro" thing? Is that some kind of mind control tactic or something? 
so what really got me is that this guy Ivan Skoko is all about taking matters into his own hands after his bike got stolen like 5 years ago 
! i mean, who needs police when u got a martial arts black belt like Ivan Skoko on ur side lol 
! Skoko's got some serious guts 2 confront someone who's trying 2 steal from another person... he's like a modern-day superhero 
!
. On the bright side, Ivan Skoko is basically like a real-life superhero 
at least now he has an excuse to carry around a ninja sword on the train 
.
and then gets taken down by some random martial arts guy? 
it's like something out of a movie but in real life! I love how he didn't even call the cops, he just took matters into his own hands. That takes so much guts! 
it's like the whole world is against us and sometimes you just gotta take matters into your own hands u know? I mean, I've seen vids of people trying to protect themselves from muggers but this guy takes it to a whole new level 
btw, brazilian jiu-jitsu is insane 
Ivan Skoko is literally a hero! I love how chill he was after catching the guy trying to steal phones from women at the station. Like, "I don't want to stab you, bro" - what a dude! 
It's not every day you see someone tackle a pickpocket and just have a conversation with them afterwards. And it's crazy how his own bike was stolen and that made him realize he needed to take matters into his own hands. Talk about motivation to train for combat, right? 
!
. Skoko's experience is a reminder that we need more community-led initiatives and empowered individuals like him who aren't afraid to take risks for the greater good 
we could all be safer out there! 
. 
who's not afraid to stand up for himself or others! 
That dude is literally talking down to someone who could've easily been hurt, but Skoko's just like "nope, let's not do that" 
. It's inspiring to see people taking initiative and using their skills to make a difference in their community. 
. I mean, someone's gotta protect people from getting robbed. plus, it's not like he was gonna use violence anyway 
. makes me wonder if we need more civilians like him on the streets, rather than just relying on the police?