(IDEX Online) - Brave jewelers Malcolm Abelson, 78, and his wife Elise, 73, saw off a raider armed with a hammer who tried to steal merchandise from their store in Manchester, England.The couple were unhurt after grappling the man, who fled empty-handed.He claimed he was interested in a necklace and three diamond bracelets for his girlfriend but snatched them from Ms Abelson and tried to run off. "My husband started screaming and I set the panic alarm off," she told the Manchester Evening News. "He pulled out a hammer and I screamed 'the police are coming'. Malcolm was fighting him and I was kicking him."In a LinkedIn post their son Richard Abelson said: "My dad, seemed to have no fear in fighting off the hammer-wielding thief and we couldn't be more proud of how he defended himself, his wife, and Abelsons, his 125-year-old family business. I hope to have half as much courage as they do when I'm in my 70s!"The family business, Abelsons, was founded by Malcolm's grandfather, in 1895 and the couple have been running it together for over 50 years.Video grab courtesy Abelsons