A man in Tusla, Oklahoma, has won the praise of his community members and many of those who saw him online after he jumped out of his truck to tackle a suspect who was fleeing from the police. That occurred on July 13, when the good samaritan saw what was happening and rushed from his truck to tackle the man, who was being chased by two police officers.
The Tulsa Police Department posted about the incident on Facebook, describing what happened and thanking the good samaritan, though it encouraged citizens to put their safety first in incidents such as this one.
Beginning, the department described what precipitated the incident and when it occurred, writing, “On 7/13/2023 around 11:30 a.m., an Officer working the Downtown area came into contact with a couple of people near 8th and Denver.“
Continuing, the department described what the individual involved did, saying that he gave a false name to the officer and then started running away. In its words, “The male, identified as Miguel Hernandez, originally gave a false name. While the Officer was questioning him, Fernandez took off running.”
As he ran, the suspect was suddenly tackled by an individual that saw what was going on and decided to intervene rather than watch and pray that the police were able to effectively do their jobs, saying, “During a short foot pursuit with the Officer, a citizen driving southbound on Denver Ave. stopped his pickup, jumped out, and tackled Miguel Hernandez on the sidewalk. The Officer was just a few steps behind and quickly took Fernandez into custody.“
The post then noted that Miguel Hernandez, the individual tackled by the good samaritan in the truck, was arrested for resisting arrest, possession of drug paraphernalia, and on felony warrants for “Burglary, Conspiracy, Larceny, and Illegal Firearm Possession out of Rogers County.“
The department then got to thanking the citizen involved for his help while also noting that people should try to stay safe rather than dealing with “nefarious characters,” writing, “We love our citizens and greatly appreciate all the support that we get from you, this was definitely a case of 110% support. Please put your own safety first before engaging with any nefarious characters.“
Watch the video of the incident here:
The video shows the suspect running on the sidewalk as a black truck slows down alongside and an individual in a bright orange shirt pops out and rushes to the middle of the sidewalk. He blocks the fugitive’s path and, when the suspect tried to dodge him, went for the tackle. The suspect, annoyed at getting arrested, let fly with a string of expletives and asked “Why you do me like that, homie?”
The police then quickly caught up with the suspect and the good samaritan that tackled him and dealt with the situation, arresting the suspect and getting the real names of those involved in the incident. The good samaritan was able to leave.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded Facebook video from Tulsa Police Department Bodycam
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