A confrontation took a sharp turn in Lauderhill after, police said, a woman pulled out a knife to fend off a would-be thief. The man suspected of trying to steal the woman’s purse was hospitalized after being stabbed during the ordeal. The woman, Robinette Varnidae, said she was leaving an area ATM, at around 7:30 a.m. on Thursday when she first noticed a suspicious man was following her home. Varnidae said the suspect forced his way into her Lauderhill apartment, located in the area of the 4300 block of Northwest 21st Street, and tried to snatch her purse, phone, and money. But Varnidae, not backing down, grabbed a knife that was on top of the table. After tussling with the man inside her apartment, the man dragged her outside, where the altercation continued out in the courtyard. Bystanders, including Varnidae’s nephew, tried to intervene but did not want to be caught in the middle. “He see me coming from the ATM, so he tried to follow me home and enter into my apartment,” she said. “I had the knife, it was on the table because we were on the inside and he snatched my bag and purse, and dragged me outside. They broke it up again and that’s when I went to swing and cutting him with the knife and he left.” Cellphone video captured a portion of the standoff. The man, whose arm was now covered in blood, was seen lunging at Varnidae. Varnidae raised the knife in her hand and the man backed away. Varnidae also walked off. After receiving reports about the fight, Lauderhill Police arrived at the scene, where, they said, Varnidae told them about the incident and that she used the knife in self-defense. By the time police arrived, the suspect already fled the scene, but he was located over an hour later after police got a 911 call from a neighbor about a man bleeding in the area of the 4500 block of Northwest 26th Street. Officers were able to locate the suspect and he was taken into custody. The suspect was transported to Broward Medical Center to treat his injuries. He is currently in stable condition.