Photo Courtesy of WREG
On April 29, Damian Austin, a Marine veteran, detained a man suspected of raping a woman inside of a Berwick ACE Hardware bathroom, leaving Austin a hero in the eyes of Savannah, Georgia residents.
Video footage captured by WSAV News 3 showed when Austin took down the suspect, 25-year-old Gregory Hathorne.
The veteran was shopping at Kroger on Ogeechee Road when he heard a scream coming from the bathrooms.
“It made the hairs stand up on the back of my neck because it wasn’t a normal yell,” Austin told the news outlet.
The veteran hero took note of a chaotic situation and acted.
“A lady behind me just said he raped that girl in the bathroom, and once she said that there was nothing else for me to do besides go out the door after him,” said Austin.
After chasing Hathorne through the parking lot, Austin was finally able to detain him by pointing his firearm at the suspect near the back of the store.
“I told him to put his hands in the air. He complied and put them up,” said Austin. “I told him to get on the ground, and he tried to say something, and I said: ‘Don’t say a word.'”
Shortly after this, an employee arrived and helped Austin detain the man.
“She went inside the store. A minute later, she came out with a pack of large zip ties, and so she pulled out a couple and walked over there,” said Austin.
“I kept drawing on him and making sure he didn’t move,” he added.
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Eventually, police officers showed up at the scene and took Hathorne into custody.
The ACE Hardware store manager expressed his gratitude to Austin for the heroic act and gave him a $100 gift card to use at the store.
“There are 100 bucks on that, and we appreciate what you did,” the manager said as he gave Austin the gift card.
“It was just an awesome thing that you did, and we just appreciate it,” said the manager.
“Thank you, sir,” replied Austin.
Although he was thankful, Austin said he wasn’t searching for recognition or accolades for his actions.
He said, “I immediately thought, ‘my wife shops here, I have friends whose wives shop here, my son works here, so it was just about not letting this person get away after he did what he did.”
Of the victim, he said, “I just hope this doesn’t dictate her life from this point on.”
“There are people who still care, and they’ll act in time of need,” he added.
Police say they’re still processing evidence and interviewing other witnesses.