"I was just reacting"

Heroic deed! Fan stops Kansas City gunman

Horrific scenes in Kansas City

(Bild: AP, twitter)

It was a horrific scene in Kansas City on Wednesday. After the Chiefs' victory parade following their fourth Super Bowl title, one person was fatally wounded by gunfire and twenty others suffered life-threatening injuries. But amidst the tragedy and panic of thousands of spectators, some fans became national heroes for stopping a suspected gunman.

The video is a hit on the internet and has already been shared millions of times. It shows a fan in the middle of a panicked crowd chasing a suspected Kansas City shooter and tackling him to the ground. Another man helps him, a woman sees the gun fall to the ground and picks it up. Together with another person, they hold the alleged assassin on the ground before the police arrive.

Hero simply walked on afterwards
The hero's name is Paul Contreras. Together with his daughter, the 46-year-old has already given TV interviews in which he describes the horrific scenes. "I heard someone shouting that we should stop this guy, tackle him - and since he was coming towards me, I did it," says Contreras. "You don't think about it, you just react. He was coming towards me, I was at the right angle and caught him from behind. When I hit him, I also knocked the gun out of his hand or out of his sleeve, because when I got him on the ground, I saw that gun there."

A second man came to the rescue. "A good Samaritan," says Contreras. "Together we fought to keep him down!" Until the police finally noticed the heroic deed. "I stood there for a minute or two, but the police didn't even exchange a word or two with me. When they held him and handcuffed him, I sat there for two minutes with my three daughters and then we just walked away, we went to our car." However, a tribute will probably follow, as not only fans but even politicians have already thanked Contreras for his heroic efforts.

Dead woman leaves behind two children
The police estimate that a total of up to 21 people were injured, including eleven children and teenagers. The fatally injured woman is Lisa Lopez-Galvan, the 44-year-old radio reporter leaves behind two children and her husband. Three people have been arrested following the incident in Kansas City.

The gun attack during the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory celebration that left one person dead was the result of an escalated personal "argument between several people," according to investigators. Kansas City, Missouri police chief Stacey Graves said on Thursday that the attack was not related to "terrorism" or domestic "violent extremism". Two of the three suspects arrested were juveniles.