Buzz
Everyone has experienced those days when everything seems to go wrong, and it feels like the universe is conspiring against you. It could be a minor annoyance, such as forgetting your wallet at home just as you’re about to pay at the store, or a more serious situation, like getting stuck on the highway with an empty gas tank.
If luck is on our side, a kind stranger might notice our struggle and offer assistance. However, there are times when the helper ends up facing unexpected consequences. As the old adage says, no good deed ever goes unpunished.
10. Todd Motley
Todd Motley, a resident of Salisbury, North Carolina, was typically a careful driver who avoided picking up hitchhikers or assisting stranded individuals. However, on the chilly morning of January 3, 2016, he decided to break his own rule.
The temperature was unusually low that day. Spotting a young woman desperately waving for help, Motley pulled over. The woman, 19-year-old Bianca Alejandre, explained that she was trying to visit her daughter when her car broke down. To make matters worse, her phone had died, leaving her unable to call for assistance.
Feeling sympathy for the young mother, Motley agreed to give her a lift. But as he turned around, he found himself staring down the barrel of a shotgun, held by a man. Motley offered his truck to the assailant, but instead, he was forced into the back. Seizing a moment when the man stepped back, Motley bolted and didn’t stop running until he reached the safety of his home, where he immediately contacted the police.
Shortly after, police received a tip from a local resident who spotted a woman hiding behind parked cars. Officers arrived and apprehended Alejandre. Her partner, Juan Alonso, was captured later that evening when a man discovered him sleeping beneath his trailer.
Alejandre and Alonso faced charges including robbery with a dangerous weapon, second-degree kidnapping, and motor vehicle theft. By early 2016, both were detained in jail. Fortunately, Motley’s truck was recovered and returned to him.
9. Unnamed BLM Employee
On December 7, 2015, 36-year-old Brandon Taylor was en route to Delta, Utah, when he stopped a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) truck, explaining that his vehicle had broken down. The BLM employee informed Taylor that company policy restricted non-staff members from riding in their trucks. However, the driver offered to seek alternative assistance for Taylor.
Taylor grew furious, pulled out a firearm, and threatened to shoot unless he was given a ride. The BLM employee managed to persuade Taylor to leave the gun in his car before allowing him into the truck. Throughout the journey, Taylor remained highly agitated, pounding on the windows and eventually shattering one.
He then seized the BLM employee by the shirt, leading to a physical altercation. The employee managed to escape, taking the truck keys with him. Taylor later found another kind stranger willing to give him a lift.
The BLM employee contacted the police, who subsequently arrested Taylor. Taylor behaved aggressively toward the officers, daring them to shoot him. On the way to jail, he vowed to track down and kill the BLM employee. Taylor faced charges including criminal mischief, witness retaliation, and aggravated assault.
8. Kristen Alm And Carolyn Benes
On December 20, 2015, Kristen Alm and Carolyn Benes, close friends from Saskatchewan, Canada, were returning home after a night out when they noticed an SUV overturned in a ditch. Concerned that someone might be badly hurt, they stopped to assist. Unbeknownst to them, the SUV’s occupants had just carried out an armed robbery at a nearby residence.
The women were forcibly removed from their car at gunpoint. Benes begged for her life, explaining that she was a mother. As she was thrown to the ground, her head struck the pavement. Alm was also knocked down and repeatedly kicked, suffering broken ribs.
The attackers stole the women’s car and drove away. Benes called emergency services, while Alm’s phone, left in the vehicle, allowed police to track it. After a high-speed chase spanning 130 kilometers (80 miles), the suspects abandoned the car and fled. Four were caught immediately, but the fifth required a police dog to locate.
The women were deeply traumatized by the event, admitting they no longer feel inclined to help others. However, they expressed regret over feeling this way.
7. Maria ‘Tonie’ Farrell
Maria “Tonie” Farrell from Orillia, Ontario, had just completed her shift at Tim Hortons when she heard a woman screaming near a convenience store. As Farrell rushed to assist, the man who had attacked the woman fled. While Farrell tended to the injured woman, Sergeant Russ Watson, a police officer, arrived at the scene.
Farrell attempted to inform the officer about the direction the attacker had taken. However, Watson became hostile, telling the 48-year-old grandmother to “shut the f—k up.” He then delivered a karate-style kick to Farrell, causing her to fall and strike her head on the pavement.
While she was on the ground, the officer began stomping on her. Farrell was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police vehicle. She was transported to the hospital, where she underwent surgery for a broken leg and a severely injured knee. Additionally, she sustained injuries to her arms, spine, and head.
Officers arrived at the hospital and charged Farrell with assaulting a police officer. During the trial, Sergeant Watson claimed that Farrell had grabbed his jacket lapel, but Farrell was ultimately acquitted of all charges.
However, the province’s Special Investigations Unit concluded that there was insufficient evidence to charge the officer for his actions. Farrell, who underwent multiple surgeries and was left permanently disabled, has initiated a $4 million lawsuit against the officer and the Ontario Provincial Police.
6. Michael Cade
On the afternoon of May 17, 2013, Michael Cade was at his neighborhood barbershop in Houston, Texas, when he heard gunfire and a woman crying for help. Cade, a US Navy veteran and former military police officer, rushed outside to assess the situation.
He witnessed a woman being forcibly pulled into a truck by an armed man. Cade quickly crouched, moved behind the vehicle, and confronted the gunman. During their struggle, Cade was shot in the face.
Seeing his friend shot and bleeding, Henry McHenry, the barbershop owner, rushed over, kicked the gun away, and pinned the suspect to the ground. Remarkably, Cade managed to walk to a nearby chair, where he sat and waited for the ambulance to arrive.
Cade required several staples to close the wound on his head and also sustained a broken shoulder. Fortunately, the bullet that struck his face was deflected, leaving no lasting damage. The suspect, identified as Truc Nguyen, was arrested. The woman he attempted to kidnap was his estranged wife.
5. Francisco Rodrigues De Lima
Sao Paulo Cathedral in Brazil, a stunning historic site, draws thousands of visitors annually. However, on September 4, 2015, this iconic structure became the scene of a tragic incident. That afternoon, 49-year-old Luiz Antonio da Silva took a woman hostage at gunpoint on the cathedral’s front steps.
The connection between the unidentified woman and da Silva remains unclear. Witnesses stated that the two had been praying together inside the cathedral before da Silva forced her outside with a gun. He held her captive for several minutes as onlookers watched, with some even recording the event.
When 61-year-old Francisco Rodrigues de Lima, a homeless man, saw the situation unfold, he sprang into action and confronted da Silva. Their struggle allowed the woman to break free. In a fit of rage, da Silva aimed his weapon at de Lima and fired multiple shots, striking him in the chest.
Police arrived and shot da Silva, who was then arrested and taken to the hospital for treatment. Tragically, de Lima died at the scene.
4. Peter Gold
On the morning of November 20, 2015, 25-year-old Peter Gold saw a man attempting to force a woman into an SUV. Recognizing her distress, Gold pulled over to intervene and offer help.
As he stepped out of his car, the assailant confronted him, pointing a gun at his face and demanding money. Gold explained that he had no cash, which infuriated the suspect, who then shot Gold in the stomach.
Bleeding on the sidewalk, Gold was targeted again as the assailant tried to shoot him multiple times. However, the gun repeatedly jammed. The gunman snatched the woman’s purse and fled the area.
While the woman escaped unharmed, Gold was rushed to the hospital in critical condition. Tulane University in Louisiana, where Gold was a fourth-year medical student, offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to the gunman’s arrest.
Eventually, 21-year-old Euric Cain was apprehended and charged with attempted aggravated rape, aggravated kidnapping, armed robbery, and attempted first-degree murder. During the investigation, police found that Cain had abducted another couple shortly after fleeing the initial crime scene.
Cain compelled the couple to travel to a deserted school, where he sexually assaulted them both while threatening them with a firearm. He is now facing further charges of rape related to this event.
Nictoria Washington, Cain's 17-year-old girlfriend, was accused of aiding him after the attempted murder by concealing him in her residence while authorities were searching for him. Both individuals are currently awaiting their trials as of early 2016. Meanwhile, Gold has been discharged from the hospital and is anticipated to recover completely.
3. Thomas Cottingham
Thomas Cottingham, a 27-year-old from Wilmington, Delaware, defies the typical image of a Good Samaritan. In 2010, he was found guilty of shattering a man’s skull using a hatchet. Yet, when he witnessed a woman in grave danger, the felon felt compelled to step in.
On September 14, 2015, while in Rodney Square, Cottingham observed 25-year-old Calvin Hooker accosting a young woman pushing a stroller. Hooker brandished a knife and pursued the woman. When Cottingham attempted to intervene, he was stabbed in the back.
Cottingham managed to walk a short distance before collapsing. As he lay helpless on the ground, Hooker stabbed him multiple times before escaping. Cottingham succumbed to his injuries at the hospital.
Police apprehended Hooker near a bus stop. He resisted dropping his weapon, prompting officers to use tasers. Hooker was taken into custody and faced charges of first-degree murder, aggravated menacing, and carrying a deadly weapon.
Cottingham, meanwhile, was celebrated as a hero. Just days after his death, over 100 people assembled at Rodney Square to honor the man who sacrificed his life to protect a stranger.
2. Alison Wilson
On March 7, 2015, Alison Wilson and her partner, Anthony Tomlinson, were riding in a taxi through Widnes, Cheshire, England, when they noticed a man engaged in a heated argument with a woman carrying an infant. Concerned for the woman’s well-being, the couple instructed the driver to slow down.
Tomlinson lowered the window and inquired if everything was okay. To avoid escalating the tension, Wilson decided it would be wiser for her to exit the taxi and check on the situation herself.
As Wilson stepped out of the taxi, the agitated man, later identified as 28-year-old Stephen Duggan, grew even more hostile. Observing the situation, Tomlinson also exited the vehicle. Duggan seized a wine bottle and struck Tomlinson on the head. He then used the shattered bottle to stab Wilson in the neck, cutting her jugular vein.
Wilson, a 36-year-old mother of two, was rushed to the hospital but succumbed to her injuries six days later. Duggan was convicted of murder and handed a minimum sentence of 22 years in prison.
1. Jefferson Heavner
Jefferson Heavner, a 26-year-old from Catawba County, North Carolina, had a passion for helping others. During every snowstorm, he would bundle up, hop into his vehicle, and set out to aid stranded drivers—a tradition inherited from his father. This was precisely what he was doing in January 2016 when disaster struck.
Marvin Jacob Lee, 27, had lost control of his vehicle, leaving it stuck in the snow by the roadside. Several motorists, including Heavner, stopped to help. They contacted the police after noticing that Lee seemed to be under the influence.
Lee grew aggressive, drew a firearm, and began shooting. One of the bullets struck Heavner. As Heavner lay wounded in the snow, Lee coldly approached him and fired multiple additional shots into his body. Lee then fled to his vehicle, only emerging when deputies encircled his car. Heavner was pronounced dead at the scene.
Lee has been charged with murder and remains in custody without bond as of early 2016.
