They held the man until police came and arrested him.

A police report says the man took Newport 100s, a Big Gulp and a Bic lighter.

“He was a fairly strong guy,” Murphy said hours after the takedown about 7:15 a.m. on Tuesday at the convenience store at Wisconsin Avenue and O Street NW. Murphy, in his spare time, serves as chairman of his Advisory Neighborhood Commission.

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Murphy made clear in an interview that he is not seeking attention. One of his friends, Joe Gibbons, who also serves on the ANC and was the previous chairman, brought the incident to the attention of a reporter.

Gibbons, a retired commodities trader, said Murphy has a lot of responsibilities representing the neighborhood, “but I didn’t think one of them was getting criminals down to the ground. . . . He didn’t know if the guy had a gun or a knife.”

Murphy was far more restrained while describing his actions. He said he thought the shoplifter was homeless; police said the 25-year-old suspect has no fixed address. He was charged in a citation with theft and released from the station house; he has a court date in September.

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Employees at the 7-Eleven declined to comment.

Georgetown has little crime compared to other neighborhoods in the city, and the police patrol area that covers most of the wealthy community reported 10 robberies so far this year, two of them involving guns. Thefts, stolen vehicles and burglaries are among the biggest concerns.

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Murphy readily acknowledged he did not stop the crime of the century, and he said of the man who was arrested, “It’s tough out there for people like him on the streets of Washington.”

He said the man was upset while being detained but calmed after a police officer came and gently talked to him before putting on the handcuffs.

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“Shoplifting is not a huge deal compared to what goes on all over this city,” Murphy said. “But it is a quality-of-life issue. It’s bad for any neighborhood it happens in. That’s the issue for me. You can’t just let it go, but you do want to make sure that people under these circumstances get help.”

Murphy said that, after the commotion quieted, he went into the store and bought his coffee. He then called his wife, who was visiting Florida. He did not come off as a hero in that report.

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