Ahmed Al Ahmed was hailed as a national hero after risking his life to disarm one of the gunmen during the Bondi terror attack, but a man involved in an earlier, unrelated incident has now made an unusual claim on the money raised to support his recovery.
Last January, Al Ahmed was working in the stockroom of his shop in Sydney’s south when he heard raised voices at the counter and went to investigate.
What followed was a confrontation with customer Dan Degney that escalated into violence, which left Al Ahmed needing hospital treatment after he was hit by Degney.
Degney was later charged and fined over the assault. He has now claimed he should receive a share of the more than $2.5 million donated to Al Ahmed for his bravery following the December 14 Bondi Beach attack.
He alleged that he was wrongly accused of shoplifting,
“He said I was shoplifting and I didn’t have anything – he may have saved all those people…but he owes me,” Degney told the Daily Mail.
“I want a cut because I warned him to let me go but he carried on.”
Degney said he had been drinking with a friend before entering the shop to buy cigarettes and became upset about the price.
“His wife was behind the counter and I asked how much for a pack of cigarettes,” he said.
“I asked if there was anything cheaper and she said, ‘No’.”
He said the argument continued after Al Ahmed came to the counter.
“I said, ‘No way, f*** that’,” Degney said.
“He told me, ‘Don’t come into my shop, don’t waste my time and get out’.”
Degney admitted grabbing a stuffed toy near the door as he left.
“I threw it away as I walked out the door,” he said. “I thought he was rude so I threw the toy into the road.”
He claimed Al Ahmed then accused him of shoplifting and grabbed him several times.
“I pulled up my shirt and said, ‘I don’t have anything of yours’,” he said.
Degney said the situation became violent after that.
“I told him if he didn’t let go, I’d hit him – so I did,” he said. “I split his lip really badly all the way to his nose and down to his chin.”
The matter ended up in court, where Degney was ordered to pay $1,300 in fines and an apprehended violence order was made.
Degney said he only realised last week that the man he was involved in the earlier incident with was the same person celebrated for his actions at Bondi Beach.
Despite acknowledging Al Ahmed’s actions during the attack, Degney said he still believes he is owed part of the donated money.
“He owes me some of that money,” he said.
“I’m going to sue him for putting me in court on an AVO charge.”
Al Ahmed has previously said he intervened at Bondi because he could not stand by while women and children were being harmed.
He is currently in the United States receiving specialist medical treatment and meeting political, Jewish and Muslim community leaders.
Al Ahmed’s legal representatives have reportedly been contacted for comment by the Daily Mail.
Images: Instagram/ Daily Mail
