Heroic Pregnant Mother Throws Herself On Son To Shield Him From Gunfire

A heroic mother who is six months pregnant risked her life to protect her son when a gunman opened fire in Brazil. 

Rafaela Dantas was having a meal with her husband, son and friends at a burger restaurant in the Federal District town of Recanto das Emas when the incident took place on Sunday night, January 24.

Dantas and her family had just been to their local church when she spotted two people seemingly having a disagreement with two other customers.

See footage from the incident below:

CCTV footage from the restaurant showed the two suspects entering the room before approaching the customers, preventing them from leaving. They made clear that they intended to rob the restaurant and steal the belongings of those in the room.

One of the men, wearing a black hooded jumper, aimed his gun at them before a male customer charged at the suspects, pushing the second, wearing a black and white striped shirt, backwards into a table. After steadying himself, the customer then backed away with his hands in the air.

The mother shielded her son with her body as the man in the striped shirt rushed over to where the family had been sitting and grabbed two of their phones before fleeing the scene.

In an interview with G1, Dantas described the experience as a ‘moment of terror’.

She commented (translated):

It is something we never expect to happen. In the hour of despair there, the first reaction we have is quite impulsive.

I thought about protecting my son. First thing, my son. Both, right? What’s in my belly too. But, thank God, everything went well, no one was hurt.

The cell phone was on the table, and my reaction was just to pull my son and protect him. Even because we do not know the reaction of a child. We, as an adult, already understand a little more, are already aware of the situation, which was putting our life at risk. The child, no. He may have the reaction of being surprised, and run away.

Fortunately, none of the customers were injured during the robbery. Police investigating the incident recovered one of the customer’s stolen phones in a nearby bush, where it was found abandoned after being tracked by its owner.

Police were yet to make any arrests as of Thursday, though the investigation is ongoing.

Dantas has been widely praised online for springing into action and protecting her son, with one social media user writing: ‘Mother’s love is the most precious in the world.’

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