Olympic Stabbing Tragedy: Don’t let it Happen to You

A Chinese man with a knife stabbed an American couple in central Beijing on Saturday, August 9, 2008, killing the man and seriously wounding his wife before jumping to his death from an ancient tower.

At first look, it appears the stabbing death of American, Todd Bachman was a senseless, random act of violence. But were there warning signs? Could it have been prevented?

“The killer was not behaving suspiciously before the attack,” said one reporter.

However, in almost all attacks there are pre-incident indicators, or “tells,” that indicate the subject is planning an attack. The perpetrator scans the crowd for a vulnerable target, formulates his plan of attack, then executes his plan.

Chinese investigators and U.S. Embassy officials said the attack was "an isolated incident" and suggested such random acts are difficult to prevent. Nevertheless, according to US military combat training expert, Hank Hayes, “There are steps we can take to prevent falling victim to such attacks. The following are five tips that might just save your life and the lives of those you love.”

1. Be aware. When you are out enjoying the sights and sounds and soaking up the local culture, don’t forget to pay attention to those around you. Watch the body language, eyes and facial expressions of others. Look for glaring, scanning the crowd or other odd behavior.

2. Trust your instincts. If you have a bad feeling, do not be afraid to keep some distance between you and the possible problem. If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t.

3. Stand up for yourself. If a suspicious person moves toward you, move away and tell them to not come any closer. Use your most commanding voice. Once someone knows you are aware of them, they will think twice about victimizing you.

4. Take action. If the person continues to approach, strike the key three areas (eyes, throat and groin) with uncompromising fury and intent to hurt.
Mr. Hayes, who has personally trained over 10,000 US soldiers, strongly promotes that we can all learn more and make small changes that can dramatically improve our personal security, safety and life. You can visit his websites at WWW.NOLIEBLADES.COM and WWW.NLBGOV.US for more useful information.

Author Hank Hayes is a contracted US government senior level combat educator and has instructed over 10,000 operators. He has invented tools for the US Military and Law Enforcement defense commands and has authored numerous articles. This and other articles can be found with extended versions and sequenced pictures at www.nolieblades.com and www.knifewise-edgewise.blogspot.com