Former Outbreak guitarist Brian Kemsley is being hailed as a hero after stopping a baby from being abducted in New York City. Kemsley — a 33-year-old Muay Thai instructor — put the would-be kidnapper in an MMA hold, restraining him until authorities arrived.
Kemsley and his girlfriend were sitting on a bench in Madison Square Park when he heard a scream. Kemsley was quick to respond and caught sight of a man attempting to grab a baby from a woman’s stroller.
The man was confronted by two onlookers, attempting to stop the kidnapping. When the man started to exhibit aggressive behaviour Kemsley — a trained martial artist — physically intervened. He put the attacker into a “read naked choke” to tackle him to the ground, he then utilised a “seatbelt hold” to keep him restrained until authorities arrived.
“The man is saying things like, “How do you know this isn’t my baby? Why are you helping her? This could be my baby, you don’t know that” he explained.
The attempted abductor was eventually taken into custody by police and transported to Bellevue Hospital for psychiatric evaluation.
“Throughout the whole thing, it became clear that this man actually had mental issues,” Kemsley recalled. Musing that as the crowd grew agitated, he decided that keeping the man restrained would be in the best interest for his safety.
“If I let go, who knows who what people would have done,” he added.
Kemsley rejects being crowned a hero, acknowledging that he was doing what any witness should do. “The bar for being a hero should not be this low,” he said. “It should be a duty, a civic duty for all to do.”
Outbreak was a beloved hardcore band that was active between 2002 to 2011. They released two full-length records through Think Fast! Records. They also appeared on the Saw VI: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack in 2009.
The incident was captured by an onlooker, you can watch the footage by clicking link below:
https://www.facebook.com/686942081/videos/10158987590217082/
If you liked this feature you may also like…
Punktuation Magazine For All Your Daily Punk News, Features, Interviews, Lifestyle and more!
Did you know that we are 100% DIY? We run our own game. No one dictates to us, and no one drives what we can or cannot put on our pages – and this is how we plan to continue!
