Texas Firefighter Captured on Video Tackling Robbery Suspect

— -- Texas firefighter Daniel Gaskey is being called a hero -- not because of a rescue from a burning home, but for breaking up an alleged holdup by tackling the suspect.

Gaskey was off-duty at the time of the incident, which occurred June 26 at a gas station convenience store in Midlothian, Texas. Newly released surveillance footage shows Gaskey being pushed aside by a man wearing a stocking mask.

The man, wielding a knife, demanded money from the cashier.

“I realized real quick what was going on,” Gaskey said. “There’s only one reason people wear a black mask at a gas station.”

Gaskey, a former wrestler and Marine, put the 19-year-old in a chokehold and pulled him to the ground, holding him down until police arrived.

“I was like, ‘He’s focused on the lady, I can control this,’” Gaskey said. “I just tossed him on the ground and landed on top of him and just stunned him. I was able to get the knife away and kind threw it out of his reach.”

The man whom Gaskey tackled, identified as Dylan Bearden, 19, was arrested on aggravated robbery charges and is awaiting possible indictment, officials said. Bearden remains jailed on $200,000 bond, according to the Ellis County Sheriff's Office website. It was not immediately clear whether or not he had an attorney.

Gaskey said he was proud to diffuse the situation and subdue the suspect.

“You don’t do this for fame and fortune. You do it because it’s the right thing to do and that’s a reward in itself,” he said.