A Connecticut pastor who was carjacked while visiting Baltimore is thanking God for sparing his life.
Rev. Kenneth Moales Jr. of Bridgeport, Connecticut fought to survive after a 16-year-old held him at gunpoint while trying to steal his car.
Moales told WBAL-TV he was in Baltimore for a funeral and had parked his car outside a seafood restaurant to meet a local pastor.
As Moales was parking his wife’s Audi A6, the 53-year-old was approached in the pouring rain by a teenager at the driver-side window as though he had an emergency, the Connecticut Post reports.
Moales cracked the window and the young male said his phone was broken and he needed help.
Then things took a scary turn as the 16-year-old pulled a ski mask over his face and pointed a gun at Moales.
Security camera video obtained from News 12 in Connecticut captured the entire incident.
“He pulled a gun like this,” Moales told WBAL-TV adding that the gunman said, ‘Get out of the car, get out of the car.'”
As the father of four stepped out of his vehicle, he thought, “I can’t die like this…My wife and children are at home, they’d be devastated. I can’t die here.”
The former football player sized up the thief’s frame and decided to fight back.
Video shows Moales punching the teen and the teen pistol-whipping him in the head. The two tussled and struggled in the street. Moales eventually was able to pin the 16-year-old to the ground.
“I’m in full pursuit at age 53 and 300 pounds, chasing some young kid in the rain,” Moales said. “It’s all adrenaline, fight or flight.”
“He got something he wasn’t expecting. He got quite a few punches to the face. I actually wrestled to get the gun out of his hand,” he added.
But the altercation did not end there.
The suspect was able to get away and get into Moales’ car.
The leader of the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit tried to reason with the suspect saying, “I told you I’m a pastor. I’m letting you leave. What are you doing?”
The young male pointed a gun at him as he drove away.
Authorities arrived at the scene within minutes. Moales escaped with only minor injuries and says he is grateful to be alive.
“My prayer today is, ‘God, thank you for covering me. Thank you for my life,'” said Moales.
Two hours later, Baltimore police arrested three people who were found in the stolen car. Two minors, ages 15 and 16, and a 19-year-old Mehkai Tindal, were taken into custody.
Tindal was “awaiting trial on assault charges” when the carjacking occurred and had a backpack that contained several sets of car keys belonging to different cars.
Tindal is being held without bail, ChurchLeaders reported.
Moales thanked law enforcement for their swift work in arresting the suspects. He told the Connecticut Post that he played football with the Police Athletic League and got to know several officers while growing up. “To this day, I have respect for police and what they do,” Moales said. “All my coaches were police officers.”
But while police officers are receiving praise for their swift action, Moales is not. Family, friends, and congregants are criticizing the pastor for fighting back. His daughter was especially upset with her father for risking his life.
“She said, ‘Dad, are you crazy?'” Moales recalled. “But I’m from Bridgeport. There is no urban community more violent and intense than Bridgeport. If you survive Bridgeport, you can go into any urban community and protect yourself.”
His grandson, however, is the only one applauding him for attempting to take down the teen.
“No one is proud of me and no one is calling me a hero, except my grandson,” Moales said. “He said, ‘You’re the man. You still got the dog in you, Grandpa.'”
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