It happened so fast, she had no idea what was going on. She didn’t know if she’d fainted, if someone hit her, or if something even worse had happened. What if she had a stroke? But as soon as she began slowly moving, she felt a sharp pain in her side. Now she knew exactly what had happened.
She glanced up, her body filled with anger and adrenaline. She snarled at the man before her, “You’re not taking my money, young man!” She then got up, and that’s when the unthinkable happened.
Winifred Peel
Winifred Peel looked just like any other woman her age. But what no one knew was that beneath the 77-year-old woman’s wrinkles and wise eyes lay a surprising secret.
She lived in a small town close to Liverpool, and she was making the most out of her retirement. She’d always lived an active lifestyle, growing up, she played all types of sports. But now, in her old age, her lifestyle was a lot slower and calm. But that didn’t mean that it wasn’t as thrilling.
Young Men
One day, Winifred made her way to her favorite cafe for some tea and cake. But on her way there, she passed a group of young men arguing. She instantly took note of how loud they were being, and she knew that they were up to no good.
But she didn’t care too much, the only thing on her mind was tea and cake. But perhaps she should’ve cared a bit more. As she walked, she suddenly realized that the café only took cash, so she quickly made her way to the closest ATM.
Approaching The ATM
Just a few minutes later, she found an ATM and quickly walked up to it. While she was stepping up to the machine, she dug around inside her bag, searching for her bank card.
After failing to find it, she stopped short of the ATM and decided to give her bag a proper search. Rummaging through her bag, she suddenly became very aware of the shuffling behind her. She froze and quickly looked up.
A Woman
A woman stood behind her, quietly and patiently waiting in line to use the ATM after her. But what Winifred didn’t know was that the shuffling she’d heard wasn’t coming from the woman behind her.
Winfred smiled kindly, “You go ahead, I’ll be a minute.” Stepping past Winifred, the woman thanked her and stepped up to the machine. Winifred was still digging around for her card, utterly unaware of the danger that was fast approaching.
Her Mindset
Winifred was known for being a trusting person. She always believed everyone around her was good, and she lived by the motto “give kindness, receive kindness back”. This mindset had always served her well, but it was all about to change.
As she dug around in her bag, her eyes locked on several shadows looming over her, but she didn’t think too much of it, at first. Too focused on finding her card, she sighed a sigh of relief when she finally found it. But her relief wouldn’t last long.
Knocked Down
She slipped her card into the machine before following the normal prompts. It was all good and well until she typed her PIN code in and pressed the ‘Continue’ button.
Before she knew it, she was on the ground, her vision blurry. She was dazed and confused. Trying to get her bearings and make sense of what had just happened, she looked around, swallowing hard. All she knew for sure was that she was in serious danger.
Out Of Nowhere
It happened so fast, she had no idea what was going on. She didn’t know if she’d fainted, if someone hit her, or if something even worse had happened. What if she had a stroke? But as soon as she began slowly moving, she felt a sharp pain in her side. Now she knew exactly what had happened.
She glanced up, her body filled with anger and adrenaline. She snarled at the men before her, “You’re not taking my money, young man!” She then got up, and that’s when the unthinkable happened.
She Knew
Her blood was boiling as she sprung to her feet. Before anyone could react, she was on top of them. It was the three arguing men she had walked past earlier. She knew right from the start that they were bad news, but she never consider what they might do before she attacked.
They obviously thought that old women were easy targets to steal money from. But they had underestimated Winifred.
She Was Strong
She lunged at the man closest to her, grabbing him by his head before using her full weight to wrestle him into the wall. He smashed into the wall with her body against him. She was stonefaced, with no fear or anger. But then the thieves jumped her.
Winifred might've been old, but she was strong. For her whole life, she had played sports and stayed active. A lifestyle that had not failed her in a moment like this. But this was just the beginning.
Scary Reflection
Six pairs of rough hands tried to seize her, but her right hand shot out and landed on one thief’s face. Panicking, the men freed the thief Winifred had and then sprinted down the road.
Still full of adrenaline, Winifred began to chase them, but then the gravity of the situation finally hit her, and her knees buckled to a halt. “It was only afterward that I realized what I’d done and started shaking,” she said, “what if he’d had a knife? I might not be here today.” But it wasn’t over yet.
Rush to Help
Hearing the fight, people nearby turned the corner to see Winifred looking distressed. Running to her aid, she waved them off, instead insisting they catch the assailants.
While one passerby stayed with her, the other two hurried off around the corner, hoping to catch a glimpse of her attackers before it was too late. And it wasn’t!
Predators
The shameless trio of teenage criminals; Felix Stoica, 19, Piper Dumitru, 18, and Florin Geblescu, 18, were looking for “easy targets” that night but underestimated this old woman's determination not to be taken advantage of.
They had driven to Bromborough from Manchester in search of vulnerable prey to target. But they got a lot more than they bargained for.
Following The Evidence
The chase was short-lived. The good samaritans had been just a touch too late to see where the attackers had run to, but the police weren’t far behind. In her furious counter-attack, Winifred had caused a fair amount of damage.
The wall and floor surrounding the cash machine were marked with evidence from the attack, with a trail leading off around the corner. A trail that could be followed.
Fighting Spirit
For years, Winifred had visited the gym four times a week. As she grew older, her routine became less intensive, yet her persistence ensured she was still in a fighting spirit.
On the day of her attack, her muscles took control, using every ounce of strength to defend herself. Unleashing her anger, she ensured that her attackers were brought to justice.