Robbers in Belgium arrested after store owner tells them to come back later

(CNN) – A group of would-be thieves were prevented from robbing a store in Belgium after the owner said he didn't have enough money in the cash register and asked them to come back later.

The owner, who was identified by CNN affiliate RTL as Didier, runs an e-cigarette shop on the outskirts of the Belgian city of Charleroi. He said six armed individuals walked into his store in the middle of the afternoon demanding money.

To diffuse the situation, Didier told the group to come back at the end of the day when the vape shop would have more money.

“I told them clearly that 3 p.m. is not the best time to hold up a store,” Didier told RTL. He said to the group, “You’ll take 1,000 euros, but if you come back tonight you might be able to take more.”

The group bought the line and left. Didier then called police.

"They weren't the brightest," he said, adding that the police didn't think they would return.

But at 5:30 p.m. the group showed up again.

Didier called their bluff a second time and told the group it was still not closing time.

"I berated them saying 'you have to buy a watch.' I said, 'it's 5:30 not 6:30,' and they left," he told RTL.

When the group returned for a third time, plain-clothes policemen were waiting for them.

Five people were arrested, including a minor, local media reported. The sixth suspect ran away.