http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Crime/20.../18038931.html
Mixed martial artist dies a hero
By CHRIS DOUCETTE, QMI Agency
BRAMPTON, Ont. - An up-and-coming mixed martial artist tried to do the right thing when he stepped in to stop a robbery over the weekend.
But it cost Kearn Nedd, 28, his life.
"It's definitely tragic," his brother, Kendall Nedd, 30, said Monday.
The victim's older brother added he would expect nothing less of the middle of three siblings, and his family takes some comfort in knowing their loved one died heroically.
"It's disappointing, obviously, because it didn't have to happen," Kendall said. "But knowing Kearn and his character, I'm not surprised at all that he jumped in to try to stop these guys."
Kearn, who had trained in MMA for seven years, was at The Rozz Restaurant and Entertainment Complex on Advance Blvd., near Dixie Rd. and Steeles Ave. W., for a poker tournament Saturday afternoon.
It's believed two men armed with guns entered the establishment looking for cash around 3 p.m.
Kearn tried to intervene and was fatally shot in the chest, becoming Peel's fifth murder victim of the year.
"I've been told my brother grabbed one of the gunmen and was disarming him when the second guy shot him," Kendall said of the deadly incident.
A witness told him dozens of people were in the restaurant and they could have been hurt or killed if his brother hadn't intervened.
The assailants remain on the loose, but Peel police have released few details.
Kendall said his brother had never been in trouble but he wouldn't hesitate to help someone in need.
"With the training and the confidence that comes with it, I'm sure he probably thought he could overpower the gunman," he said.
Kearn, who had two amateur fights under his belt, hoped to turn pro as early as this year.
"He was always at the gym," he said. "It was his life."
Fellow fighters at Kombat Arts Training Academy in Mississauga, where Kearn trained before switching to a different gym recently, are also grieving.
"This is very shocking to all of us," said Sylwester Organka, the gym's manager and senior Muay Thai instructor. "He was such an incredible human being."
Standing at about 6-foot-6 and with an incredibly long reach, Kearn had all the tools to be successful in MMA, Organka and others said.
"He was full of life and joked around a lot. But when he came to his training, he was very serious," Organka added.
Boxing instructor Rafael Delgado said Kearn was well respected as a person and a fighter.
"He was a super nice guy, always upbeat and smiling," he said. "He definitely will be missed."
Anyone with information is urged to call homicide detectives at 905-453-2121, ext. 3205, or pass on anonymous tips to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
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Originally Posted by bawang
