An attempted kidnapper was subdued and arrested in a Montreal park over the weekend, and former NHL enforcer Georges Laraque helped bring the 24-year-old man into custody.
According to CBC News, a 7-year-old girl was in Jeanne-Mance Park with her parents when a man allegedly grabbed her and started to walk away. Family members tackled the man before he got far, and several people who were playing in a charity baseball game nearby rushed over to see what had happened.
One of them was Laraque, and he helped watch over the attempted kidnapper until police arrived.
“I just wanted to make sure that if he got up that I was going to tackle him right away,” the former Canadiens forward said.
Laraque was one of more than 20 people who surrounded the suspect. He said the incident was “crazy” and really hit home for him as a father.
“I have twins and this could happen to anyone,” Laraque said. “We’ve heard stories of a child being abducted and to see [something] like that — it’s pretty scary.”
We’ve heard uplifting stories before about athletes helping to take down criminals, but this one is a bit more disturbing than most. We’re glad there were enough people watching over the little girl to avoid a crisis.
