CAIRO – Dubbed as a hero, an Egyptian illegal immigrant has been awarded a residency permit in Italy, after he tackled an armed man who threatened a cashier in armed robbery.

“I am aware of the consequences of my actions,” the 29-year-old Egyptian told police, according to Italian newspaper La Stampa.

The incident occurred when the Egyptian young man was waiting to pay for his groceries in a Lidl supermarket when the man in front of him pulled out a knife.

Wearing sunglasses and a baseball cap, the assailant man, named by local media as a 52-year-old unemployed Italian, Alfredo Vaira, threatened the cashier with the roughly 7in knife and told her to empty the cash register.

Standing in a line of people, the Egyptian attacked the robber who was collecting his bag and stolen cash.

Being an illegal immigrant, the man said that he was risking deportation as he had no documents to show them.

Unexpectedly, officers rewarded his heroism by taking him to the immigration office at police headquarters where they processed a residency permit application for him on the spot, on the grounds of political asylum.

The application means the Egyptian is now able to work legally in Italy.