2 new Marines from Lexington had their newly acquired skills and training put to the test last week.

Pfcs. Noah Jordan and Caleb Montgomery had just pulled up to their local recruiting substation when they heard a commotion coming from the Lexington Best Buy on Sunset Blvd.

“We could just hear yelling at first, and we looked over and saw the police chasing after a suspect fleeing from the Best Buy,” said Montgomery, 19, of Irmo.

The suspect had just been caught attempting credit card fraud and was attempting to flee the scene. The new Marines immediately assessed the situation and took action.

“I looked at Montgomery and said, ‘We’re going to do this,’ then ran,” said Jordan, 18, of Lexington.

The pair took off in the direction of the suspect, running straight for him and cutting off his escape route.

“The suspect tripped over himself when we ran up to him, and then when he looked up at 2 Marines blocking his path, he gave up trying to get away,” explained Montgomery.

Lexington Police Pfc. William Norris said, “In my years as a police officer, I have only seen it a couple times where a bystander has intervened to help the police. Typically, people will stand by and pull out their phones to record the encounter, so it felt really motivating to see somebody actually take action and help us catch them.”

The pair attributed their decisiveness to training from their drill instructors at Parris Island and their local recruiters at Marine Corps Recruiting Substation Lexington.

“It was definitely a positive surprise when the police came up to the station after the incident to tell us what these young men had done,” explained Staff Sgt. Ty Fletcher, the staff noncommissioned officer-in-charge of Recruiting Substation Lexington. “We spend a lot of time teaching these young men and women the core values of the Marine Corps, so when we get to see them come back from boot camp and put those values into action, it is highly rewarding for us as recruiters.”

Montgomery and Jordan will report to the School of Infantry at Camp Lejeune, NC, before attending formal schooling for their military occupational specialties.