George Laraque, a former NHL player for the Montreal Canadiens, was among a group of people who stopped a suspected kidnapper at a park on Saturday.
According to CBC Sports, Laraque, often referred to as an "enforcer" on the ice, helped make sure the suspect, accused of trying to forcibly kidnap a 7-year-old girl, did not leave after he was tackled by several family members.
Laraque, who was playing at a charity baseball game at Jeanne-Mance Park in downtown Montreal, joined in to assist the family after hearing the girl scream.
"I have twins and this could happen to anyone," Laraque said, admitting that the incident was frightening to him as a father. "We've heard stories of a child being abducted and to see [something] like that — it's pretty scary."
Authorities said that the 24-year-old suspect appeared to have struck up a conversation with the young girl and then grabbed her and tried to walk away, CBC Sports.
The Toronto Sun stated that family members quickly intervened when the girl started screaming.
"I just wanted to make sure that if he got up that I was going to tackle him right away," said Laraque, who played 13 seasons in the NHL.
Montreal police Constable André Leclerc said that authorities took the suspect into custody and that he may need a psychiatric evaluation this week. Leclerc said that the suspect could be formally charged by Monday.
The charity baseball game Laraque participated in, the Pouzza Grand Slam, was organized by Julien Harvey. He said the game was nearly done when those involved heard the victim scream, prompting staff members to call 911.
"Someone from the gang just sat [the suspect] down and at that point everybody just arrived on [the scene]," Harvey said.
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