Good Samaritan helps officer capture man accused of attacking woman

Off-duty Houston police officer calls good Samaritan 'instrumental' in capturing man

HOUSTON – A good Samaritan jumped in to help a police officer capture a man accused of attacking a woman.

Locking up his downtown business after a late-night event, Darren Ricketts thought his work was done until he heard the screaming.

Ricketts said he realized Arthur William Brown was attacking a young woman, attempting to rape her as she tried to get to her car near the University of Houston Downtown campus.

"She was in shock. She got thrown down by a masked guy on the sidewalk," said Ricketts.

Ricketts said he watched an off-duty Houston police officer step in, fighting to stop Brown, but Brown managed to break free from the officer.

"He was trying with everything he could to tackle him and subdue him and arrest him, so I jumped in and helped," said Ricketts.

Ricketts and the officer chased Brown for a block. Then, before the masked man could cross the street, they tackled him.

"Wrestled him to the ground. All I could get was one arm. The officer had an arm. He was calling for backup. The radio flew in the street," said Ricketts.

Ricketts said Brown kept trying to throw punches and kicks, but they held him until more officers arrived. Investigators said Brown was arrested and charged with attempted aggravated sexual assault.

In court documents, the off-duty officer called Ricketts "instrumental" in capturing Brown.

Those are words the good Samaritan finds hard to accept.

"I'm not a hero at all," said Ricketts.

Court documents also show Brown has a criminal history dating back several decades. They state Brown was convicted of rape in 1979 and convicted of failure to comply as a sex offender in 2010.