Canaan Bower was just 16 years old when he intervened in an attempted kidnapping at a gas station, pinning down the suspect until authorities arrived.
A New Mexico teen, who was celebrated as a hero in his town in 2020 for thwarting an attempted kidnapping, died last week after being involved in a fatal motorcycle crash, his family said. Recent high school graduate Canaan Bower, 18, had been riding his motorcycle last Wednesday when it collided with a car making a turn, authorities said, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican.
“Canaan lived life to the fullest and loved with his whole heart,” his mother, Kara Garrett Bower, wrote on Facebook. “He will be forever missed.”
Bower was 16 years old, a high school football player and wrestler when he intervened in an attempted kidnapping at a gas station. He had been pumping gas when he heard screaming from across the road, his mother said in a previous post.
“She had a baby in her arms and was running away towards the store, and there was a guy coming after her getting really frustrated,” Bower told the Las Cruces Sun News at the time.
The man had apparently attempted to kidnap a woman and her young children before he continued on to “hit several people in the car station and … [cause] a bloody mess,” his mom said.
Other witnesses unsuccessfully attempted to intervene before Bower “threw him to the ground,” and kept him pinned until authorities arrived soon later, the post read.
“There is a very good chance that Canaan saved many lives today and he definitely protected the kids from harm,” his mom wrote in 2020.
The suspect was ultimately charged with four counts of battery, two counts of assault, two counts of child abuse and one count of kidnapping, the Sun News reported.
The incident gained national attention, and his moves were commended by UFC President Dana White as well as professional fighters Henry Cejudo and Jorge Masvidal, according to the Sun News.
Bower was also honored for his heroism by the city’s mayor, Doña Ana County and the New Mexico State Senate. His county even named the day of the incident the Canaan Bower Day of Valor.
The family has set up a GoFundMe page to fundraise for his funeral expenses.
