When a kidnapper attempted to kidnap two young children in broad daylight, a normal day became every parent’s worst nightmare.
In Las Cruces, New Mexico, a mother and her three children were waiting for an Uber outside Chuck’s Gas Station. While they waited, the mother observed a suspicious man staring at them. The kidnapper then grabbed one of her children a few moments later.
After a brief altercation, the family dashed back inside the gas station while the man pursued them. A student-athlete stepped in at that point to save the day.
When wrestler Canaan Bower, then 16 years old, saw the chaos, he jumped in to help. Canaan dropped the suspect to the ground and pinned him there until the police arrived, using his wrestling skills. Canaan thought it took forever, but the whole thing happened in less than five minutes.
Canaan acknowledged that he was concerned that the kidnapper might be armed with a knife or gun, but that his instinct to safeguard others trumped his need to protect himself.
He was named USA Wrestling Athlete of the Week after being honored as a hero by UFC president Dana White and mixed martial arts champions Henry Cejudo and Jorge Masvidal.
