By Joanna Putman
Police1
DURHAM, N.C. — Newly released footage shows the moment a police chaplain’s martial arts training was put to good use as the officer he was riding along with was involved in an altercation with a suspect, WRAL reported.
The incident occurred on Oct. 20 when Durham Police Officer J.T. Rose and Chaplain Scott Wilkos spotted a car traveling at more than 100 miles per hour, according to the report.
The video inside the cruiser released on Jan. 8 does not indicate whether Rose initiated the pursuit but does show Rose and Wilkos observing the car and speeding up to follow it. Soon after, the vehicle crashed.
Rose approached the vehicle and gave the suspect instructions to get on the ground. The suspect, now identified as Demario Holman, 35, did not comply with Rose’s instructions. Instead, he started an altercation and attempted to flee.
The video then shows Wilkos coming to Rose’s aid, wrestling the suspect to the ground. The two eventually put Holman in handcuffs as other officers arrived to take him into custody.
The body camera footage shows that Rose complained of severe pain from a knee injury, while Wilkos was bleeding from his hand after Holman allegedly bit him.
When another officer interviewed Rose and Wilkos as they were awaiting treatment in a hospital, Wilkos said he came to Rose’s aid when he saw that Holman was trying to choke him.
“Thank God [Wilkos] intervened quickly enough because … he had one arm around my neck; the other arm going for my gun,” Rose said.
Wilkos, whose social media pages reveal his extensive jiu-jitsu background, said that it was his day off, and the ride-along was voluntary, according to the report.
Holman is being charged with assault on an officer, assault with strangulation and assault inflicting serious injury, among other charges, according to the report.