Police in Tempe, Arizona, have honored a New England Patriots player who they believe saved an elderly woman from sexual assault in the city over the weekend.
Police say Justin Herron, a 6-foot-5, 300-pound offensive lineman on the team, was training late Saturday morning in a Tempe park when he heard someone yelling for help.
Herron told police he had found a man, 30-year-old Kevin Caballero, who assaulted a 71-year-old woman and threatened to rape her.
Police said Herron and another local resident had busted Caballero and held him until the police could arrive on the scene.
“At the time, I was in shock,” Herron said according to USA Today. It was 11 a.m. in a very open field in the middle of the day and the fact that it happened there at the time was just really shocking. I wish I could tell you what I was thinking, but I could just say someone needed help. . All I could do was rush myself there to make sure I could help the victim and comfort her and be the best person I can be. “
For his quick thinking, Herron and the other man who assisted him received the “Outstanding Service” award from the Tempe Police Department.
“I’m a soccer player, I’m quite tall. I try not to be too aggressive with people, knowing that I could potentially hurt someone,” Herron said. ‘I have a loud voice. I screamed, told him to get rid of her and then yanked him away and I told him to sit down and I told him to wait for the police to come. ‘
The woman, who suffered no major injuries, was taken to a local hospital and treated.
The second man, Murry Rogers, said neither he nor Herron knew the attacker prior to the incident.
“I am almost twice as old as Justin,” Rogers said, according to the paper. So I did my best to run to the situation and help where I could. We yelled at him to get out. Once the attacker got off the victim, we looked at each other and said, ‘We have to take care of it. He’s not going anywhere. “A lot of effort was made to make sure he sat down, didn’t move, and would wait for the police.”