A mum has been honoured at 10 Downing Street after she leapt into a ‘wild’ gang attack in Wales to help rescue the victim.
Of course, it didn’t hurt that she was an off-duty police officer, but that takes nothing away from the bravery shown to stop the attack.
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48-year-old Clare Larkey-Jones had just finished an 11-hour shift and was heading through Caernarfon at the time of the incident.
Telling her passengers to remain in the car, she sprang from the vehicle and pulled a group of men off another who they were beating up.
She told North Wales Live: “I had just finished an 11-hour shift and was picking my brother and his girlfriend up at The Maes in Caernarfon before going home when I heard a lot of shouting.
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“I told my brother to stay in the car and I walked over and a gang of lads were picking on a young man in his 20s.
“They were like a pack of wild animals and started beating him up.
“They stopped when I came over but then they started again.
“I just went on auto-pilot and got hold of the ring-leader, shouted at them and pulled him off before they ran away and then called the police and ambulance.”
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In the end, the case ended up before the Crown Court in Caernarfon, where it was told that Larkey-Jones pulled ringleader Callum Lee Davies off the victim ‘mid-punch’.
He was later jailed for the attack, but Judge Nicola Jones also made mention of PC Larkey-Jones’ heroic actions.
She said: “Thankfully, PC Clare Larkey-Jones, who was off duty that evening, with no thought for her own safety, clearly thinking only of restoring order, intervened.
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"She got in the middle of all of all of these men who were behaving violently.
“She very clearly and robustly sent everybody on their way."
The mum was also later nominated for a Police Federation Bravery Award.
After the dust had settled, she said: “I just knew there was something not right going on there and I thought if that was one of my boys was getting beaten up I would like to think that someone would do the same as I did.
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"I honestly didn’t think anything of it at the time.
“I just don’t like to see people being bullied.
“My husband asked me why I did it and it was because it was the right thing to do.”
Larkey-Jones now works as a Sexual Offences Liaison Officer for North Wales Police, but has 22 years of experience in frontline policing.
Chief Superintendent Sian Beck said: “This is a 24-hour service so we don’t work 9 to 5. You don’t always go home when you want to and you’re not always at home when your family are celebrating bank holidays. You do see people when they are at their most vulnerable and in the worst time of their lives and that can be upsetting.
“However, on the flip side, being a police officer is the most amazing career with a host of different opportunities.
“Like Clare, you can have a really long and successful career as a patrol officer, building up a wealth of experience and knowledge of the communities we serve.
“If you prefer you can go for a whole range of specialisms.
“The opportunities are endless and you can have a whole range of careers within the police. “Whichever route you choose, you’ll be working with some incredible colleagues and making a real difference to people’s lives on a daily basis.
“It’s a massive responsibility but also a great privilege.”
Tom Wood