Pauli Borchardt, 17, was enjoying a leisurely walk home from a friend's house, talking to his brother on his cell phone when three other 17-year-olds cornered him and demanded he hand over the mobile.

Still talking with his brother, Borchardt stared at them and refused.

Not to be outdone by one boy they had surrounded, the trio insisted they intended to do more than hear just one side of the conversation and gave him one chance to hang up on his brother or face a tête-à-tête of a different kind.

A kick-boxing and karate champ, Borchardt is not reported to have had much trouble laying the three out before continuing safely to his home on the same street.

Apparently he was also able to continue talking to his brother as no help came from the three boys laying prone on the street until a passer-by saw them and called an ambulance.

Quick wits in the hospital, however, proved white collar crime may be a safer bet for the three thugs who reacted better under police questioning than they did with their fists on the street.

The would-be robbers convinced police to go after Borchardt and a gang of baseball bat-wielding hooligans who supposedly left one of them hospitalized while the other two were treated for cuts and bruises.

Police intended to arrest the martial arts expert when they arrived at his home, but were soon set straight and went back to looking for the "victims" on suspicion of attempted robbery.