An alleged attempted kidnapping at Montreal’s Jeanne-Mance Park on Saturday afternoon was thwarted by family members and bystanders, one of whom was former NHL enforcer Georges Laraque.
According to CBC News, Laraque was participating in a charity baseball game at the park when a man allegedly tried to walk away with a seven-year-old girl.
The 24-year-old man was stopped almost immediately, and Laraque was one of 20 to 30 people who surrounded the suspect until police arrived to take him in for questioning.
“It was surreal,” said Laraque. “The park was full of people everywhere.”
“Everybody saw it. There were so many witnesses when it happened.”
Laraque, who last played for the Montreal Canadiens in 2010, wasn’t going to let the man escape.
“I just wanted to make sure that if he got up that I was going to tackle him right away,” said Laraque.
The incident has put a scare into the former pugilist, who finished his NHL career with 1,126 minutes in penalties.
“I have twins and this could happen to anyone,” said Laraque. “We’ve heard stories of a child being abducted and to see [something] like that — it’s pretty scary.”
