Obviously he should have picked on someone his own age.

Gregory McCalium, 24, was left with severe facial wounds after the knife-wielding thug attempted to rob his elderly neighbor in Botley near Oxford, England, Britain’s TRnews reported.

The would-be burglar broke into the home of Frank Corti last Aug. 19 – without realizing the 72-year-old was a retired boxer.

Frank Corti, 72, who served with the Royal Engineers in North Africa from 1956-58, dodged the knife and punched Gregory McCalium, 23, twice in the face, giving him a black eye and a swollen lip.

“He made a slashing movement at me,” Mr Corti said. “I stepped back. He missed me, fortunately.”

Mr Corti said he pinned McCalium’s arms against the wall and asked him to drop the knife. The intruder refused.

“I shouted to my wife to ring the police,” Mr Corti said. “I was absolutely petrified.”

“As I saw it, it was a matter of do or die so I let his wrists go. Fortunately the element of surprise was with me, so I adjusted my position and hit him with my right hand.”

“He was stunned. I heard the knife drop,” he said. “We both fell to the floor. I had to subdue him by punching him, which I did not take a great deal of pleasure in.”



Gregory McCalium partying. He hosted a rowdy party the night before the incident. Photo: FacebookSource:Supplied

The incident was preceded by a dispute between the neighbours just hours before. McCalium hosted a rowdy party at his home the previous night, and Mr Corti found the barman banging on his front door at 6:30am. He called the police.

“They would slam the doors, then they would start partying. You could hear shouting, screaming and music,” Mr Corti said.

Two hours later, McCalium broke into Mr Corti’s house.

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The court heard Mr Corti was at home in Botley, Oxford, with his wife Margaret, 72, when McCalium, a neighbour, forced his way in at 8am on Aug 19 last year. McCalium was drunk.

Speaking after the case, Mr Corti said: “I was scared when he first drew the knife, but my old training must have kicked in because I just punched him as hard as I could and he went down like a sack of spuds. If you can’t defend what’s yours, where are we at?”

He won’t be partying anymore, having been sentenced to four and a half years in prison for aggravated burglary.

The judge told McCalium he “got what he deserved”.