Buffalo, NY security guard caught on video confronting man with AR-15

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A New York security guard is being praised for taking heroic actions in a confrontation with a man armed with an AR-15.

Doors have now reopened at the Hispanics United of Buffalo after a violent confrontation with a gunman, who police say was armed with an AR-15.

But security guard Reynaldo Beckford sprang into action.

"When I turned, I saw in the corner of my eye, I saw was the person and the rifle. That's all I saw," Beckford told WKBW. "At that moment, I took a good look at the person, and I couldn't believe what was happening."

Beckford said he's been in the security industry for more than 20 years, and, when he had a close encounter with this gunman, he was in survival mode.

"I had him and the rifle. I was saying, 'Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.' And that's when he turned back, and he had stopped fighting for a while, and that's when the other security guard started coming down the stairs," Beckford said.

He said the gunman wouldn't take his finger off the trigger, so everyone had to put up a fight.

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In a video, you see where they were able to tackle the suspect and take his gun.

"I would be lying if I say to you I wasn't scared for my life. And the first thing that flashed over my brain was my baby who just turned 3 years old," Beckford said.

He said he doesn't want to label himself a hero, instead, a man just doing his job.

"That's the business I'm in, to save and protect, and that's exactly what I did," Beckford said.

Erie County District Attorney John Flynn said the suspect, 48-year-old Jeremy Griffin of Buffalo is now facing a number of charges.

"Two security guards and two civilians who, in my mind, took nothing less than a heroic action, they did not worry about the safety of themselves. They were concerned about the safety of the people who were around them," Flynn said.

"Nobody lost their life, nobody got hurt, and to God be the glory," Beckford said.

He said he will consider seeking therapy, and the clinic is looking into increasing security.