17-year-old Cameron Cook has been hailed as a hero by the city of Boston after saving a young girl from a child predator.

The teenager from South End was shopping at a local Target with his mother when he noticed something odd about a fellow shopper. “I seen the guy grabbing himself, and my mom goes, ‘Cam let’s go, keep walking,’ I was like, no, something’s going on,” he told CBS News.

Cameron continued to watch the man follow a little girl. When the predator made his move and thrust his body against the child, Cameron stepped in. “So I went up to him, I was like, ‘Excuse me sir, do you know her?’ And then the first thing he said was, ‘I’m not a pervert, I’m not a pervert.’ I was like, I didn’t ask you that sir,” said Cameron.

“I was close enough that I could smell the liquor coming from his mouth,” Cameron’s mother Heather commented. “It was horrible. He was big, and Cameron had no fear at all. He just stood firm on the fact that he knew what this man was doing was wrong.”

The brave young man refused to move and encouraged the creep to leave. After mumbling a few curses, the man finally walked away. Cameron informed the store manager who turned security footage of the man over to police.

“I’m very proud of him, but it’s totally within his character,” Heather continued. “He’s not afraid to do what’s right.”

The City Council of Boston recognized Cameron for his selfless heroism and the Boston Celtics basketball team honored him through their Heroes Among Us program. At a home game the Celtics asked Cameron to step onto the court and presented him with an award for making an “exceptional contribution” to his community.

Hear more about Cameron’s story in the video below.

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