Good Samaritan races in to save man from violent attack

ROSWELL, Ga. — Two teenagers are facing charges after police said they attacked and tried to rob a man walking home Saturday night.

Ryan Sunderland told Channel 2's Mike Petchenik that he was on Roswell Road, near Northridge, when he noticed the two teens.

“They were acting kind of suspicious,” he said. “They ran across, (and I was) not sure what their intention was.”

Minutes later, Sunderland said the men tackled him to the ground.

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“At the bottom of the hill there, next thing I know I was tackled from behind. They went ahead and started punching me in the face,” he said. “(They) yelled at me, ‘What you got? What you got?’”

Sunderland said he did everything he could to protect himself from the blows.

“Got into a defensive ball…started kicking at them,” he said.

Brian Eaglen told Petchenik he was driving up Roswell Road when he spotted the attack out of the corner of his eye.

“I slammed on my brakes, pulled a U-turn on Roswell Road, and faced my car on them and the victim,” he said. “One of them had a mask on his face, so I knew it was a crime happening at the time.”

Eaglen said he honked his horn and yelled out his window and eventually the suspects stopped the attack and walked away.

“I started to follow them until they ran into some woods where I couldn’t get to them,” he said.

“It’s not every day that you see someone stop and help in a violent situation like that,” Sunderland said of Eaglen’s actions.

Within minutes, Sandy Springs Police said they spotted the teens and both Sunderland and Eaglen identified them as the attackers.

“I was really happy with the way Sandy Springs handled that,” he said. “That was really quick.”

Police aren’t releasing the names of the suspects because they are juveniles.

“I hope they learn a lesson on it that it’s not acceptable behavior,” Sunderland said.

Cox Media Group