NFL Player Takes Matters into His Own Hands When He Sees Someone Breaking into His Car
Fullback Alex Armah is used to taking out defensive players who break into Carolina Panthers backfield, but last week he took out a man who had broken into his car.
On Feb. 6, Armah was alerted that someone was trying to break into his car parked outside his apartment complex in Charlotte. Armah took matters into his own hands and apprehended the suspect, employing a wrestling move — the “arm-bar” — that made sure the guy wasn’t going anywhere.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police arrived a short time later and the suspect, Daniel Cagle, 32, was then arrested on charges of attempting to break into or enter a motor vehicle, the Charlotte Observer reported.
Alex Armah says he used a wrestling move to stop a man trying to break into his car https://t.co/Yjo41gabtx
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 13, 2019
Armah was in his apartment at the time and alerted to the intruder by a camera installed on the dashboard of his car.
“It alerts me when there’s any type of movement or motion around my vehicle,” Armah told the Observer.
“I got an alert on my phone, and it shows you a preview of what is going on. And it tells you ‘event in process.’ When I looked at it, there was a still frame of someone in my vehicle, going through my stuff.”
Armah, 24, ran out to confront the intruder.
“He was just like, ‘Hey man, is this your car?’ And I asked him what he was doing inside of it… He was in denial, like, ‘Nah, nah, I was just admiring it,’” Armah told the Observer.
“He kept trying to lie. I said, ‘C’mon man, I have a camera that clearly shows you were in my car.’”
Armah told Cagle they should go to the front office of the apartment building to check the security cameras. Cagle had said he lived in the building, but he changed his story when they got to the front office.
“He was like, ‘My friend lives here, I was just walking through,’” Armah told the Observer. “At that point, me and the concierge looked at each other and the dude tried to make a run for it. I snatched him up by his shirt.”
The front desk clerk then called the police, as the man tried to escape a second time.
https://t.co/BUmXw6N6jp Carolina Panthers fullback Alex Armah says he used an “arm-bar” wrestling move to detain Daniel Cagle, 32, attempting to enter his vehicle on Feb. 6 at his apartment complex in uptown Charlotte. #KeepPounding
— /r/Panthers (@PanthersReddit) February 12, 2019
“Eventually I get him on the ground, and I put him in an arm bar,” Armah told the Observer.
He held him there for three minutes until police arrived and handcuffed him.
According to MMA Training, an arm bar is performed by “placing your legs across the opponent’s chest, with one of his arms between your thighs and with the elbow joint against your hips. From that position the opponent’s arm is grabbed with your arms and his forearm is placed on your chest. To lock the arm, you will simply lean back and arch your hips at the same time.”
“The guy wasn’t small, he had some size on him,” said Armah. “But he didn’t have a chance. I take pride in my car.”
Suspect breaks into Panthers’ Alex Armah’s car, Armah confronts him https://t.co/ntYmb6V4ZD pic.twitter.com/1j3oDx796K
— NBC Charlotte (@wcnc) February 13, 2019
Armah, 24, has played two seasons with the Carolina Panthers after being drafted in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
He played in all 16 games last year, earning two starts. The six-foot, two-inch, 255-pounder only rushed nine times for 15 yards, but had two touchdowns.
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