Knife-wielding robber demands cash on Christmas. But bystander sends him away with painful present.

A man who identified himself only as Daniel was visiting his elderly parents in Yuba City, California, for the holidays — and not wanting them to labor in the kitchen, he took them to a local Wendy's on Christmas, KTXL-TV reported.

Image source: KTXL-TV video screenshot

That's when Daniel, who had come in from out of town, noticed a man walk into the Wendy's with a bag over his head, the station said.

"So I kept an eye on him," Daniel explained in a phone interview with KTXL. "And then I noticed that he had a knife in his right hand. And he cut in the front of the line and went up to the cashier, brandished the knife, and said, 'Give me the money.' And then about two seconds later, he turns to somebody on his left and says, 'She'll take care of you in a minute.'"

It was decision time for Daniel.

"My first thought was, 'What's this guy gonna do?'" he noted to the station.

But it seems the sight of the knife was the tipping point for him.

"And when I saw the knife, I thought, 'Look at all these people in here. I don't want this to turn into somebody's Christmas memorial.'"

What did Daniel do?

So Daniel grabbed a wooden chair and brought it down on the culprit's head, KTXL reported.

Image source: KTXL-TV video screenshot

With that, the suspect ran out of the restaurant and into a getaway vehicle, described as a white 1990s to 2000s sedan, possibly a Honda, the station said — and Daniel chased him with chair still in hand.

Did the suspect take anything with him?

The fellow didn't get any cash from Wendy's, KTXL said — but likely took home a nasty head injury.

"If anybody out there knows a friend who got a gash on the head last night, that was probably the culprit," Daniel told the station.

What may have helped Daniel to act the way he did?

Daniel told KTXL he received special training as an Air Force security policeman.

How are Wendy's employees reacting?

They're calling Daniel a hero, the station said.

"That's a very traumatic experience, and he helped us instead of standing back and watching it," cashier Erika Farris told KTXL.

Image source: KTXL-TV video screenshot

Daniel was humble about his part, however, telling that station he'd "like to think that anybody would do something like that."

(H/T: Blue Lives Matter)