Would be robber has tables turned on him by Fresno man

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Fresno man turned the tables on a would-be robber Wednesday morning. Fresno resident Ray Mata is still in shock after coming close to pulling the trigger on his gun after a robber attacked him.

"I'm still shaking. Like I said, it's something you don't wake up thinking you'll going to have to do."

Wednesday morning, he stopped at a nearby gas station and saw a strange man before work. Minutes after parking his truck, that same man was outside his vehicle.

"I got out and I asked him 'hey what are you doing?' He looked at me and yelled and came at me with a knife, and I jumped back in my truck and he stabbed my door. The knife broke and he picked up the blade. When he picked up the blade, I rolled my window down and pointed my gun at him and told him to back off. He just looked at me, turned around, and took off running," said Mata.

Mata told his coworkers at Electric Laboratories to call the police, who later identified the suspect as Jason Gonzales.

"Officers responded and found Gonzales about a quarter mile up. They detained him-- he is in custody for assault with a deadly weapon and he also had a double bladed knife in his possession," said Lt. Joe Gomez, Fresno Police Department.

Mata has a carry concealed weapons permit and got one four years ago to protect himself.

"It's either my life or his ,and he came at me with a knife to-- basically a gunfight. So he would have lost," Mata said.

He said he's thankful he had his own weapon when danger came his way.

"The way things are going now, I'm not going to let someone take me away from my kids just because they are on drugs or want $20 or whatever's in your wallet."

A lesson the father of four has now experienced firsthand.

Mata said he's glad he has his permit all these years and it came in handy when he least expected it. He's now looking forward to going home and spending time with his family.