Personal safety alarm saves Tulsan from mugging suspect

A young Tulsa woman got the scare of her life when a man threatened her with a knife while she was taking a walk with her two-year-old son. <br><br>As News on Six crime reporter Lori Fullbright explains,

Tuesday, April 23rd 2002, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

A young Tulsa woman got the scare of her life when a man threatened her with a knife while she was taking a walk with her two-year-old son.

As News on Six crime reporter Lori Fullbright explains, there are some important lessons learned from this woman's experience that could keep us all safer. Melissa Fink's son loves to go for walks around the neighborhood and that's what they were doing on Sunday when their usual carefree time together turned into a moment of terror.

Fink says she and her son were enjoying the warm spring day when all of a sudden, a man jumped out of the woods, grabbed her from behind and held a knife to her stomach. "All I remember is he was screaming at me in Spanish and all I understood was money.â€

Fink didn't have any money with her and her first thought was for her son and for the baby she just found out she is carrying. So, she grabbed the first thing at hand. "I pulled this and scared him away. That scared him and I ran to the first house I could see.â€

Fink borrowed the personal alarm device from her grandmother and in this case, she's sure it saved her and her son. "I felt a real sharp blade, when he ran off, it must've tore my shirt and I got just a scratch on my stomach. They said we were lucky it wasn't worse. Without the protection device, he probably would've killed me.â€

Tulsa Police say if the robber wants your property, give it up; if it's you he wants, then, don't go quietly. Tulsa Police officer Lucky Lamons, "It did make noise and noise draws attention. That's what we want and what the bad guy doesn't want.â€ Fink says even though the robber didn't steal any money from her, he did steal her ability to relax while doing something as basic as walking down the street on a nice spring day with her son.

Police say it's best to walk in pairs, but if you can't do that, carry an alarm or whistle to make noise. If you have a purse, throw it in one direction and run the other way and carry a cell phone to call police. Itâ€™s also important that you give a complete description of the suspect.

You can buy the personal safety alarms at any local Radio Shack stores.