A police officer in Connecticut who saved the lives of students returning home from school, after a runaway SUV barreled towards them has been honored.
In a video posted by the Bridgeport Police Department to Facebook, it shows, School Resource Officer Carlos Carmo Jr. directing traffic after the school dismissal at Harding High School, when a black SUV was observed rolling past him on Boston Avenue.
“I saw the car driving by me with no driver, and basically a passenger and somebody in the back seat just freaking out,” Carmo said.
The vehicle was in a park on a hill but somehow began moving, according to police. The video shows Carmo chasing after the vehicle. “I saw the car was heading towards a barrier and heading towards a group of kids and I ran towards it as best I could,” Carmo said.
The car was rolling towards a group of students walking home from school with Carmo chasing it and he grabbed onto the door frame and “held on for dear life.”
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“I knew if I didn’t get that car to stop, at least four or five kids would get hit by that car,” he said. He somehow brought the vehicle to a halt, receiving a few minor scrapes in the process. He is modest as he says, “I don’t think I did anything spectacular or special,” he said Monday. “I work at a great department with great officers and any one of them would be able to stop that car.”
Thank you Officer Carlos Carmo Jr. for your quick thinking!#Bridgeport #RunawayCar #HeroicAct #Hero #BPTFinest #BPTProud https://t.co/b7PrFegnDx
— Bridgeport Police (@bptpolice) December 23, 2019
Carmo, has been working for the last four years in the department, and was recently honored for his quick thinking by the city’s mayor and city council. Chief Armando Perez said he was scared for his officer, but also proud of him for his actions that day.
“Not only is he a hero, but he’s a great father and husband,” Perez said. “He’s an example to all of the police officers in this department.”