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SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (AP) — A couple said Friday that their fight-or-flight instinct kicked in when they spotted a car wanted in the abduction of a girl after she got off a school bus in Massachusetts.
Appearing on ABC's “Good Morning America,” spouses Benny Correa and Amanda Disley described recognizing the vehicle sought in an Amber Alert in the abduction Wednesday of 11-year-old Charlotte Moccia.
The couple said they were out getting dinner with their five children when the blue car drove by. Correa, in the driver's seat, began following the car. His wife called 911, giving their location as the driver sped up and ran red lights. The couple noticed the driver was pushing something down in the backseat.
When you see someone's life in danger, “you go,” Disley said.
But she said her husband slowed and let cars pass at the red lights before resuming the pursuit. She said they would never have put their children's lives in danger.
Being a father, Correa said, he did what he had to do.
Police arrested the driver, 24-year-old Miguel Rodriguez, about six hours after the abduction.
Not guilty pleas to charges including kidnapping were entered on his behalf, and he was ordered held without bail Thursday pending a hearing to determine whether he is a danger to society.
The girl had no apparent injuries.
Charlotte's parents singled out the couple in a statement thanking everyone involved in finding their daughter.
“In particular, we'd like to thank Amanda Disley and her husband for their vigilance and courage for putting themselves in harm's way to make sure she wasn't out of their sight," Carl and Denise Moccia said in the statement released through Springfield police.
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