A bystander tripped an armed, fleeing suspect in Ohio and he fell to the ground, disarming him and allowing pursuing police to catch and arrest him.
A man with a cane identified as “Bill” was shown in police video sticking out his leg as the armed man ran by and tripping the suspect, who fell.
“[The suspect] was coming my way so I got in his way,” Bill said in the video. “I heard him hit [the ground] and the gun went sliding out. He went one way and the gun went another.”
No one was injured in the incident, and police were able to arrest the suspect and recover his weapon. Bill had been visiting the library with his granddaughter before the suspect ran by.
“I just felt as a citizen of this town I had a responsibility to act and to help,” Bill said.
One Columbus police officer said she suspected Bill had prior training to do what he did. “It looked like training kicked in,” she says in the video.
The 18-year-old suspect had a Glock 9mm pistol with an extended clip, police said, adding that Bill may have saved the suspect’s life by tripping him, avoiding a shooting situation by getting the gun away from him.
“Community involvement, be it by courage, bravery and/or fancy footwork, helped take a criminal off the streets of Columbus,” the police said, WCMH reported. The suspect is being held in Franklin County Jail.
"I just felt as a citizen of this town I had a responsibility to act," Bill said.
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