Delaware County pizza delivery man stops alleged car thief
ASTON, Pa. (CBS) -- Hailed a hero.
A Delaware County pizza delivery driver is serving both pizza and justice after he tripped a suspect allegedly involved in a high-speed police chase.
Cocco's pizza delivery man Tyler Morrell said "you better not hit my car" as a driver in an allegedly stolen car traveled across a lawn in Brookhaven before he jumped out and tried to run from police.
"I could see him get away from the cop and I'm like, 'I'm right here, so I might as well do something,'" Morrell said. "Yeah, I might as well throw my leg out."
Morrell, 29, was able to hold onto a pizza and trip the 17-year-old suspect, who went airborne. He then falls to the ground and police quickly took the suspect into custody.
"I really tried to just make him stumble, so they can catch up to him but I didn't mean to send him flying, so that's the craziest part of it," Morrell said.
Brookhaven Police Chief Michael Vice says he watched the video plenty of times since the incident.
"He made a split second decision to help out," Vice said. "He saw the police and saw what was happening, and decided in that moment that he was gonna help us."
Police asay a 19-year-old man was in the passenger seat of the allegedly stolen car, but he was also eventually caught.
Police identified him as Jhonael Gutierrez-Tejada, of Darby, who was arraigned Monday.
"You can see the tire tracks over there," Madison Steinmatz said.
Steinmatz ordered the pizza –- a large half plain, half pepperoni that was still freshly delivered.
"Everything was still intact," Steinmetz said.
Morrell is a 6 foot, 8 inch former college lacrosse goalie who used to kick lacrosse balls away from the net.
He says his instinct to trip the suspect may have come from that.
Both suspects now face several charges.