Metro

Wild video captures good Samaritan tackling armed man who was fleeing cops on NYC street

Wild video shows the moment a good Samaritan tackled a man armed with two guns fleeing cops in Manhattan last week.

Surveillance video released by the feds shows suspect Jason Fleming, 39, running down a Chelsea street with a revolver in hand — until a brave man stands in his way, pushes him into a nearby fence and grabs him by the jacket.

Three police officers who had been on Fleming’s tail caught up seconds later and handcuffed him, according to the footage.

The crazy scene unfolded on the afternoon of March 16 after Fleming allegedly got into an argument with a man and barged into a convenience shop — flashing the revolver inside, Manhattan federal prosecutors said.

The footage shows a frightened young girl carrying a backpack running out of the Grocery Smoke Shop on Tenth Avenue near West 25th Street as the armed man stood in the doorway.

The suspect then pulls back his coat to display a loaded semi-automatic Hi-Point carbine rifle that had been slung over his shoulder, according to the video.

A witness called 911 to report that someone had a rifle and was holding a beer in his hand, according to the criminal complaint against Fleming. 

A good Samaritan grabbed Fleming and held him for responding cops. Department of Justice / SDNY
Fleming was charged with possession of firearms after a felony conviction, federal prosecutors said. Department of Justice / SDNY

Responding cops approached Fleming — who was still carrying the beer — but he took off running down the sidewalk, the complaint states.  

He allegedly brandished the rifle while fleeing — as terrified bystanders ran away from him.  

Fleming then tossed the rifle over a fence near where customers were eating at a restaurant’s outdoor dining shed, prosecutors alleged. 

He was arrested after the courageous bystander intervened.

Fleming was not allowed to own guns because of his two prior felony convictions for unlawful firearms possession, prosecutors said. 

Fleming allegedly frightened multiple bystanders as he fled from cops with the rifle in tow. Department of Justice / SDNY
Fleming tossed the rifle over a fence near where customers were eating at a restaurant’s outdoor dining shed, prosecutors said. Department of Justice / SDNY

He was charged with possession of firearms after a felony conviction — which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. 

Both the rifle and the revolver, a loaded Smith & Wesson .357 Magnum, were recovered. 

Records show that Fleming was held in state prison from 2018 to 2019 in connection to one of his previous weapons offenses, before being released on parole. His parole expired a year later. 

The other arrest was in Rhode Island in 2009, and he was sentenced to five years’ probation, prosecutors said. 

After tossing the rifle, Fleming allegedly kept running with the revolver in hand. Department of Justice / SDNY

US Attorney Damian Williams applauded both the good Samaritan and cops for getting Fleming off the streets.

“As alleged, the defendant illegally brandished two loaded firearms in broad daylight on a Manhattan street, one of which was a carbine rifle, frightening numerous New Yorkers, including a child,” Williams said in a statement.

“Thanks to our law enforcement partners and the heroic efforts of a Good Samaritan, the defendant was apprehended before he could hurt anyone, and his weapons are now off the streets.”