Do you think you’d be brave enough to help someone in danger if you saw them? Everyone would like to think they would.
The truth is, though, that a lot of people freeze up in bad situations like this and can’t stop it from happening.
When a gas station worker stepped in to stop a kidnapping, he showed how brave he is.
He didn’t know if getting involved would put his life in danger or make things worse, but he couldn’t just watch it happen in front of him.
Manveer Komer is 25 years old and works at a gas station in Philadelphia late at night. Even though he sees a lot of strange things, he knew something was wrong when a man and a woman walked into his store one night.
Manveer saw that the woman was shaking, and when the man used her credit card to buy cigarettes, he knew that the woman was not with the man because she wanted to be.
When the man tried to leave with the woman, Manveer stepped in to protect the woman and let the man know that something was wrong.
“You come [stand] behind my back. I’ll help you. No problem.”
By doing this, he showed the woman that he would help keep her safe. He didn’t know what was going on or what their relationship was, but he knew he had done the right thing by how they both acted.
Manveer told the man to give her back her car keys and her card, but the man refused.
Manveer thought for a few minutes that the man was going to attack him, but instead, he ran away in the woman’s car. The car happened to have her cell phone in it, so when Manveer called the police, they were able to track it and find the man quickly.
It turns out that the man took the woman hostage. She is a doctor, and earlier in the day, he stole her car. He took her to different stores and ATMs to try to get her to withdraw as much money as possible.
The woman was scared, and no one knew what the man had planned for her after she had taken out all of her money or reached her withdrawal limit.
The woman was clearly so scared that she didn’t even want to tell anyone she needed help. Most likely, he tried to hurt her.
This woman’s life may have been saved by Manveer’s quick thinking and courage. A lot of what went on at the gas station was caught on security tapes. These things also show how brave Manveer was. Even after the man left, he helped the woman call the police and gave her a bottle of water. She was clearly scared and had trouble even dialling.
It’s hard to say what would have happened if Manveer hadn’t been there to help the woman or if he had been too scared to act when he felt something wasn’t right.
This story is a good reminder to always be aware of what’s going on around you and to look out for others. But if “stepping in” isn’t a good idea, calling the police might save the life of a stranger.