Wichita Falls, TX (CNN) — Rather than running to hide, 11-year-old TJ Smith ran for help after he saw a stranger grab a 7-year-old in his neighborhood.
“When he saw it,” said Tj’s mother Angela Smith, “he said that he knew something wasn’t right. So he went to Brad’s.”
Brad Ware and his wife then headed out to track down accused kidnapper, 26-year-old Raeshawn Perez.
Once Ware found Perez, who was trying to put the girl through a window of an abandoned home, he ran after him, tackled him and held him down until officers arrived.
Mayor Stephen Santellana and Police Chief Manuel Borrego wanted to personally thank the two good samaritans.
“You have two individuals and an 11-year-old that stepped up and used bravery and put a stop to something that could’ve been really bad,” said Wichita Falls mayor Stephen Santellana. “In the past six months we’ve had a lot of tragedy in the community and twice we’ve had people step up and help the city of Wichita Falls. To me that speaks volumes.”
For the latest heroic act, Ware and TJ were awarded certificates of bravery.
Tj and Ware stopped a kidnapping and a scary situation that could have ended very tragically. And in the meantime reminded an entire community to always do the right thing.
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