North Cowichan (B.C.) Mayor Al Siebring, left, presented Carnegie Hero John Thomas Prokop with the Carnegie Medal during the municipality’s April 3, 2019, council meeting.
Along a city street in Duncan, B.C., Prokop helped rescue a police officer who was struggling to detain an aggressive assailant on July 8, 2016. The assailant had placed his hand on the officer’s duty belt, which held a holstered handgun. After struggling with the officer and escaping, the assailant ran to a church porch. There, the assailant put the officer in a headlock. The officer stated later that he was nearly exhausted and began to have difficulty breathing. While others stood nearby, Prokop, 49, business operator, sprang into action and grasped the assailant. A struggle ensued. The officer was freed and placed the assailant in a headlock, while Prokop pinned the assailant’s legs until backup officers arrived.
“This presentation was truly one of the biggest honors I’ve had since becoming mayor,” Siebring said afterward on his Facebook page.
Photo courtesy of the Municipality of North Cowichan.