New Zealand kebab shop owner calmly ignores armed robber and continues serving customer

A New Zealand kebab shop owner has been praised for his enviably calm reaction to an armed robber,

Canterbury Police have released the CCTV footage of the moment the masked gunman entered the Egyptian Kebab House in Christchurch last month.

But takeaway owner Said Ahmed wasn’t having any of it, calmly continuing to make an order and ignoring the robber’s demands for cash.

"He came into my shop and took out a gun from a bag and asked me to give him money," Mr Ahmed explained to the BBC.

"I’m not a hero. I just stayed calm and he wasn’t expecting that. I am a businessman. I hadn’t finished with my customer and my priority was to finish serving him," Mr Ahmed said.

Mr Ahmed finished the order and handed it to the customer, who, understandably, wasn’t long getting out of there.

The shopowner then cooly walked to the kitchen to call the police - and even told the would-be robber what he was doing who Ahmed says couldn’t believe it.

"For a moment I was scared he might shoot but then I just thought if that happens then it is my destiny, but my calm reaction just surprised him I think and he just ran away."

The CCTV footage has been watched over 170,000 times and has made Mr. Ahmed into a bit of a local celebrity.

"Customers have been telling me how brave I am but I don’t think I am brave. It just happened and I didn’t really think anything of it," he said.

"It was a surprise because nothing like this has ever happened to me in the 15 years I have owned the shop. It has made me a little bit famous though and that is quite nice."

Quite nice, indeed.

Canterbury police are looking for information on the man in black.