UFC Fighter Kevin Holland and his training partner, Patrick Robinson, subdued a man who opened fire inside RA Sushi restaurant in Houston on Monday night, Fox 26 reported.
The two fighters and several other customers took down the suspect, identified as 24-year-old Jesus Edrai Cardiel Samaniego, after he entered around 11:30 p.m. and shot the ceiling, police said.
"We were pretty much eating, and the next thing you know, you just hear a pop," Robinson later told KHOU 11. "Me and my buddy, we ran to the shooter ... got him down, strangled him, took the gun from him ... called the police, and they got him."
"We fight for a living, so it was just quick instincts," he added.
Police praised the two fighters and the other diners who assisted for immediately responding.
"If it wasn't for the quick thinking of the good Samaritan taking the gun away, who knows what could have happened," said Houston Police Department Sgt. Ricardo Salas. "We're very thankful."
Investigators said the suspect did not say much when they inquired about the incident, but said they found drugs on him, KHOU 11 reported.
Police said Samaniego could be charged with possessing a stolen gun and illegally discharging a firearm.
This is not the first time Holland has heroically beaten back crime. In October, a Twitter post claimed the fighter chased down a suspected car thief in his neighborhood.
"Kevin Holland apprehended a guy who was in the process of stealing someone's car in his neighborhood," the post read. The post said Holland "chased him down and stayed with him till the cops showed up."
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