FORT PIERCE, Fla. (CBS12) — A bystander tackled a driver who ran from Fort Pierce police twice Friday afternoon, ending a chase that police say put other drivers in danger.

Police identified the driver as 21-year-old Leon Kevin Gentle-Coaxum of Port St. Lucie. He faces two felony counts of fleeing and eluding with property damage, along with charges of hit and run with property damage, driving without a valid license and resisting an officer without violence.

According to a Fort Pierce Police Department news release and an arrest affidavit, officers were running a targeted traffic enforcement operation near Okeechobee Road and Jenkins Road around 4:45 p.m. Sept. 25 when an officer spotted a blue Volkswagen Jetta heading south on Okeechobee Road. FPPD Maj. Michael Santiago told CBS12 News the department runs those operations in areas where it gets a lot of complaints about crashes and speeding.

The officer ran the Jetta’s tag and found the registered owner had a suspended driver’s license, the affidavit states. The officer pulled the car over on Edwards Road just east of Jenkins Road. As he walked up to the passenger door, the Jetta sped off.

“The officer didn’t even have a chance to speak to the person,” Santiago said.

A St. Lucie County Sheriff’s deputy who happened to be passing by began chasing the car, according to the affidavit. Police said the driver sped into oncoming traffic and used the grass shoulder to get around stopped cars.

“Going down the wrong way, going on his shoulder, causing a hazard to the public,” Santiago said.

Santiago said the pursuing officer slowed down to keep the public safe, and the chase was called off.

Around the same moment, the Jetta got stuck at a red light at South 25th Street and Edwards Road. The officer ordered the driver out at gunpoint, but the door was locked and the driver refused, the affidavit states. Police said he then tried to take off again, ramming a pickup truck in front of him.

The officer broke the driver’s side window. As the glass shattered, the driver climbed over the center console and out the passenger door while the Jetta rolled backward and slammed into a Toyota SUV behind it, according to the affidavit.

The driver ran south on South 25th Street. That’s when a man who had watched everything unfold tackled him in the street, and officers took him into custody.

Santiago said the man, whose name has not been released, was on foot nearby when it happened. When officers asked him afterward why he stepped in, Santiago said the man told them “he is all for police. And he saw an opportunity to help, and he felt that it was his duty to help.”

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Santiago said the man also told police everyone else around him was just recording.

“He took the stance of, I’m not going to videotape, I’m actually going to help,” Santiago said.

The department thanked the man in its release, and Santiago said FPPD plans to formally recognize him. Still, police don’t want others to follow his lead.

“So again, we don’t recommend that citizens get involved in any type of police action to prevent any injuries. But in this particular case, we’re very appreciative that he did,” Santiago said.

Instead, Santiago said people who see a foot chase should call 911 or point arriving officers toward where a suspect or officer ran. He also asked drivers to pull over when they see lights and sirens.

Police said the Jetta doesn’t belong to Gentle-Coaxum, but FPPD told CBS12 News his license was also suspended. Santiago said Gentle-Coaxum told officers he ran because he knew he wasn’t supposed to be driving.

Gentle-Coaxum was taken to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center for medical clearance before being taken to the St. Lucie County Jail.