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An 86-year-old British woman fought off a would-be thief by repeatedly beating the female suspect over the head with a package of bacon.

According to Greater Manchester Police, the victim had withdrawn a “large quantity” of money from a bank machine before heading into a supermarket on Monday.

“Whilst shopping, the lady was challenged by an unknown female who grabbed her trolley and demanded the money she had withdrawn,” police said in a statement posted on the department’s Facebook page.

Police said the elderly woman defended herself from the suspect by repeatedly hitting the female over the head with a package of the cured meat before the suspect fled the grocery store.

The police department’s account of the incident has attracted a lot of smirks on Facebook, probably because of the odd tale and the #BeatOffWithBacon hashtag police used when sharing the post.

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“Sounds like a Hambush to me…” Matthew Philpott commented.

“Good on her… bet the offender made off with egg on her face,” Sharon Kinsey wrote.

“That hashtag is just wrong,” another Facebook user said.

“That hashtag though. I mean, I like bacon as much as the next guy, but…” Mike Kent commented.

The Facebook post has been shared over 1,400 times.

Police said no arrests have been made.