A humble father-of-two has been hailed as a hero after he and other bystanders stepped in to stop a man who allegedly assaulted a mother in front of her daughter.
Sangha Chau, 42, was watching buskers play at Rundle Mall with his family about 12pm on Sunday, when he heard a woman screaming.
The Adelaide pest controller said he turned to see a woman running down the street with her child.
‘I ran towards her first, then I saw the guy coming,’ he told Seven News.
‘I just threw the elbow and jumped towards him.’
Footage from the street showed a man allegedly chasing the mum and daughter.
The vision captured the moment Mr Chau sprang into action and knocked the man to the ground.
Mr Chau revealed he had played rugby as a young man and remained calm as he and other strangers helped lie on top of the alleged attacker.
A man who was allegedly pursuing a mother in Adelaide’s CBD was stopped by a stranger on Sunday
Father-of-two Sanga Chau remained calm as he bumped an alleged attacker to the ground at the scene
He said he forgot he had his son with him at the time and followed his first instinct to step in.
Police said they arrived to the scene on Sunday to find a 43-year-old woman with non-life-threatening injuries.
‘Members of the public detained the man until police arrived and placed him under arrest,’ an SA Police spokeswoman said.
Scott Michael Antrobus, 37, is alleged to have attacked the mother.
He was arrested by South Australian police officers at the scene.
Mr Chau said after a man had been taken by police he continued his afternoon shopping with his wife and children.
Mr Chau had been informed members of the public were wishing to buy him a beer and revealed local personality Andrew ‘Cosi’ Costello had even reached out to him.
But, he said he didn’t want anything from the public, instead insisting he was more concerned for the welfare of the victim of the alleged attack.
‘Buy the victim something, some chocolates or flowers to cheer her up, or put it towards a woman’s shelter,’ he said.
SA Police said members of the public detained a man until officers could arrive on Sunday afternoon
Police charged Mr Antrobus with assault, hindering police, and refusing to provide his name and address.
Police also alleged he was in possession of an ice pipe when he was arrested and was in breach of bail.
It is understood he was not known to either the mother or the child.
Mr Antrobus appeared at Adelaide Magistrates Court at the beginning of the week and did not seek bail, according to the Advertiser.
He will face court again in April.
