Between the steampunk Iron Mans and accordion-playing Boba Fetts at New York Comic Con last weekend, there was one supposed criminal mastermind lurking in the crowd. Richard Turner has been charged with grand larceny after attempting to steal a rare $4,000 copy of Action Comics #11 and an $11,000 copy of Whiz Comics #1, featuring the first appearance of Captain Marvel. But comics vendor Matt Nelson swooped into action, getting a chance at crime-fighter glory and the hyperbolic speech that goes along with it.

Nelson told the Post, "Like Superman, I flew into action, determined to stop the bad guys. Just like in the comics, justice prevailed." Nelson said Turner and a cohort stopped by his booth on Saturday before they began to pack up, and swiped the books, thinking no one was looking. But Nelson tracked and eventually confronted him, saying, "'Hey, you were just at our booth and I want to make sure that you pay for the books that might be ours.'" Turner insisted he paid for the goods. The two began to argue, and other vendors surrounded them, spooking Turner into bolting for the escalator. A security guard stopped him at the bottom and cuffed him, making the streets safe for plastic-sealed comics from 1940 once again.

According to Your 3D Source, Whiz Comics #1 is the 10th most valuable comic in the world, worth up to $84,000 in "near mint" condition. Earlier this year, Action Comics #1, which features the first appearance of Superman, sold for $1.5 million on a comic auction website.