One Good Thing: The Ex-Boxer Who Didn’t Wait for Someone Else to Do It

Airports—those magical places where overpriced coffee meets the thrill of delayed flights and the occasional knife-wielding lunatic. At Almaty Airport in Kazakhstan, passengers were treated to more than just a tedious layover when a 67-year-old man decided to liven up the terminal by taking a 21-year-old security officer hostage and threatening to blow the place sky-high. Because, you know, nothing says “logical travel frustration” like hostage-taking.

Enter 52-year-old Musa Abdraim, a former boxer who apparently didn’t get the memo that the proper response to a hostage situation is to whip out your phone and film it for social media clout. Instead, Abdraim did something ridiculous—he intervened. Offering himself as a replacement hostage, he somehow convinced the would-be bomber to swap out the terrified young woman for an aging fighter with a history of punching things. A solid trade, if you’re in the market for bad life choices.

Once the security officer was out of harm’s way, Abdraim waited for the perfect moment and then did what ex-boxers do best—he handled business. With a swift move, he disarmed the attacker, neutralizing the threat before police even had a chance to figure out whose jurisdiction the chaos belonged to.

For his efforts, Abdraim is set to receive a state medal from Kazakhstan’s president, which is a much better outcome than, say, a viral GoFundMe for medical bills. Of course, the real lesson here is that sometimes, when faced with immediate danger, you don’t need a committee, a task force, or an “expert consultant.” You just need a guy willing to walk up and say, “Yeah, I got this.”

So here’s to Musa Abdraim, a man who proved that the quickest way to end a hostage situation is to be the scariest guy in the room. One good thing, indeed.

Here’s the actual footage…