Detroit Gas Station Clerk Saved Teenage Girl From Rapist After She Mouthed 'help' To Him

The young Yemeni migrant manning nan rate registry astatine a Sunoco state position successful Detroit struggles astatine clip pinch his English, but constabulary opportunity he instantly understood erstwhile nan 16-year-old woman seeking to bargain cigarettes silently mouthed nan connection “help.”

Now Abdulrahman Abohatem is being hailed arsenic a leader for redeeming that teen from a suspected rapist who allegedly abducted her astatine gunpoint past week. And nan section Yemeni-American business organization is showing its appreciation by raising money to thief him defray nan costs of his upcoming wedding.

“We are each very proud of him,” Mohammed Alsanai, main of nan Frontier International Academy successful Hamtramck, which is wherever nan teen attends school, told NBC News connected Monday.

Alsanai said nan schoolhouse precocious hosted a ceremonial wherever Abohatem was awarded a “Knight Medal” for his quick-thinking response.

Abohatem told section reporters being capable to thief a teen successful threat was reward enough.

“I consciousness bully erstwhile you prevention somebody,” he told the ABC News connection WXYZ-TV. “Sixteen years aged — she is simply a child.”

Donald James Joseph Arthur Fields, 48, is arrested successful Hamtramck, Mich., connected April 13, 2026.Hamtramck Police Department

The suspect, 48-year-old Donald James Joseph Arthur Fields of Hamtramck, has been charged pinch 2 counts of criminal intersexual behaviour first degree, kidnapping, 1 count of felonious assault, 3 counts of felony firearm and 1 count of felon successful possession of a firearm, according to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.

Fields is being held without enslaved successful nan Wayne County Jail, Chief Hussein Farhat of nan Hamtramck Police Department said aft Fields was arrested connected April 13, nan time of nan incident.

The fishy is “a criminal who had a history of rape charges, and we will make judge he gets what he deserves,” Hamtramck Mayor Adam Alharbi said aft Fields was arrested.

The 16-year-old was waiting for a autobus to schoolhouse erstwhile Fields forced her astatine gunpoint into his van and drove away, constabulary said. But this did not spell unnoticed. Another female student who saw what happened instantly called 911.

While constabulary were responding to nan reported kidnapping, Fields allegedly assaulted nan teen successful his van and past drove pinch her to nan state position crossed nan metropolis statement successful Detroit.

Meanwhile, officers arriving astatine nan schoolhouse encountered respective students who were already utilizing their cellphones to way nan missing woman done a societal media app, constabulary said and Alsanai confirmed.

“The full room froze erstwhile we realized we knew wherever she was,” nan main said.

Armed pinch that info, constabulary headed for nan Sunoco arsenic well.

By then, Fields and nan teen were already wrong nan state station’s convenience store.

When nan fishy told nan 16-year-old woman to salary for nan cigarettes, Abohatem told WXYZ-TV he was instantly suspicious.

“I extremity and spell there’s thing wrong,” he said. “And she mouthed talked to me, for illustration pinch nary sound, ‘help.'”

Abohatem said he stepped retired from down nan store’s protective solid and stepped successful betwixt Fields and nan teenager.

“I spell out, I footwear him out,” Abohatem said of nan suspect. “I inquire nan girl, ‘Go down me.'”

Fields quickly fled and was heading backmost to his van pinch Abohatem basking connected his heels erstwhile nan Hamtramck constabulary arrived and took nan fishy into custody.

“I spot nan constabulary outside. I constituent to him. I go, ‘That’s nan guy,'” Abohatem said.

Police quickly handcuffed Fields and past confiscated his van and a handgun.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said nan teen was nan unfortunate of a seemingly random onslaught and praised her for keeping her cool moreover aft she was assaulted.

“Our young subsister successful this lawsuit was simply stepping successful wide daylight erstwhile she was viciously attacked and sexually assaulted,” Worthy said successful a statement. “Despite what she had conscionable gone through, her speedy reasoning and intelligence toughness saved her life. We cannot reverse what happened to her, but we tin activity difficult to bring justness to her. “