Off-Duty Cop Pins Down Knifeman After Stabbing Outside School: Police

An off-duty police officer in England jumped into action to detain a knifeman after he stabbed a man near a school.

Detective Constable (DC) Mark Bates had been off duty on July 1 last year when he noticed a group of people hurling abuse at others, drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana close to a school in Water Orton, in Warwickshire.

Bates sprang into action when Kyle Youlden, a member of the group, stabbed a man who confronted them over their behavior, according to a West Midlands Police news release.

"DC Bates and the victim - who was stabbed in the arm - gave chase and grabbed Youlden as he ran into Coleshill Road," according to the statement.

"Mark disarmed the 21-year-old and pinned him down until back-up arrived from colleagues at Warwickshire Police."

While Youlden was arrested, DC Bates searched the area hoping to find the other man and a woman who made up the rest of the group. When he spotted the man at about 3:45 p.m., he found that he was also in possession of a knife.

The other man and the woman were later released without charge.

Jail Sentence

Youlden was jailed on Tuesday, March 8, for two years and three months after he pleaded guilty to wounding and knife possession.

Following the sentencing, DC Bates said: "I didn't hesitate and ran after him straight away. He'd already stabbed someone and had a knife near a school so I didn't know what he was capable of.

"When I caught up with him I took him down and pulled his right arm out from underneath him. There was a knife, closed in his hand. I took it out of his hand and threw it a few feet away.

"I could see the victim was bleeding quite heavily from his arm so told him to take his shirt off and wrap it around his wound. It was nasty but could have been a lot worse.

"I just acted instinctively as any police officer would: it's my duty to protect the public at whatever cost to me and I would do the same again."

Warwickshire Police Detective Inspector Gareth Unett said: "DC Bates showed immense bravery in tackling an armed man who had already shown he was prepared use his weapon.

"Even while off-duty he showed great commitment to protecting the community, he's a credit to the police service."

Newsweek has contacted the West Midlands Police for comment.

According to Statista, there were 61,924 aggravated assaults that involved a knife or other cutting instrument across the U.S. in 2020.

That was still behind handguns, which were involved in 69,423 aggravated assaults that same year.