Video shows good Samaritan in a cowboy hat jump in to help cop struggling with a suspect who grabbed for a gun

Police in Southern California are seeking to find the identity of a good Samaritan who stepped in to help an officer struggling with a suspect who was reaching for his gun in the parking lot of a hardware store.

The Brea Police Department said the foot pursuit followed upon a routine traffic stop on Wednesday over an obstructed license plate in the city of La Habra.

Video obtained by KTLA-TV from the police officer's body camera shows him running to try to apprehend the driver. The officer could be heard calling in that the driver was running through a Home Depot parking lot.

The officer, who was an ex-football player, caught up to the suspect just as he was returning to his car.

"They're wrestling. The officer has his gun on his right side. And you can see the suspect's trying to grab for his holster there," said Brea Lieutenant Police Chris Harvey to KTLA.

"In fact, he grabbed so violently that he broke the bolts that hold the handgun to the side rig the officer was wearing," he added.

Harvey said the suspect called to a woman who had been a passenger in the car to help him get the officer's gun.

That's when the unknown man in a cowboy hat stepped in.

The video shows a man helping the officer until another officer comes in to help them control the suspect.

Harvey says the man left before police could get his name, but they would like to talk to him so that they can give him some recognition.

"It may sound extreme to say the officer was fighting for his life, but under the circumstances, you have to consider what is the suspect's intention in grabbing the officer's gun," Harvey said.

"So yeah, that is absolutely a fight for your life," he concluded.

Police said they want to thank the man and ask him to be a witness in the case.

Here's the video of the altercation:

Good samaritan helps officer in troublewww.youtube.com