With a quick left hook, a Bridesburg mother nabbed the man who attempted to kidnap her daughter as she walked with a friend.
The 11-year old girls were walking home from a carnival last Friday when the man and an accomplice approached them asking for help in finding a cell phone, according to Philadelphia Police Capt. John Darby.
The girls said no and then continued walking. But the man -- identified by police as 23-year old Jeffrey Meyers -- allegedly began chasing the two, Darby said.
The preteens raced towards the one girl's home, feverishly banging on the front door for help.
"I thought somebody was hurt or something," said the mother -- whose identity we are keeping a secret. "So, I opened up the door and him and her fell into the door and he still had her arm in his hand pulling her off the step."
That image was all the mother needed to spring into action. "I chased him and then I turned the corner and just swung. I wanted to make sure he wasn't getting away," she said.
In the meantime, family members inside the house had called 911 so it wasn't long before officers were on hand to take Meyers into custody.
"This wasn't me running after him and just sneaking him and getting him beat up for no reason. He was grabbing my daughter," the mother said. She called her actions "pure instinct."
Meyers was charged with kidnapping and assault. He is being held on $16,000 bond.
