Naked Man In San Francisco Train Station Doing Gymnastics & Tackling People

The transit worker who fended off a naked acrobat accosting commuters at a San Francisco train station last month is getting kudos for his bravery.
The police chief for the Bay Area Rapid Transit said they plan to honor service worker Duane Bullard — and they’ve already taken him out to dinner and given him a day off with pay, reported NBC affiliate KNTV.

Bullard didn’t have to risk possible injury to himself, but “he had the courage to do so,” said Police Chief Kenton Rainey.

Although the outlandish incident occurred May 10 at the 16th St. Mission Station, video was uploaded to YouTube this week.

It shows a completely nude man with a distinct mane of black hair assaulting people and performing wild gymnastics stunts off of turnstiles and newsstands.

In the beginning of the video, he menaces a young woman, causing her to fall to the ground. That’s when Bullard steps in to defend her.

“I’m thinking of my mom, my sister, my wife and ladies in my church,” he told KNTV. “It could have been any ladies I know. I want someone to do the same for my family, so I just did what I should be doing — helping.”

Bullard’s intervention allowed the woman to escape and seek refuge in an enclosed station agent’s booth. One of the agents called transit and San Francisco police for help as she filmed the surreal situation with a cellphone.
But Bullard said no one else tried to step in to stop the screwball.

“They reacted by pulling out their cameras and filming it, and that’s it,” he said. “That’s all the assistance I can get, but I wasn’t looking for no one else to help.”

The video shows the naked man lying on the ground and then harassing another commuter before it cuts off.

Officials later identified him as Oakland man Yeiner Garizabalo, 24, whom friends say is an acrobat and had been performing with a circus troupe prior to his bizarre “breakdown.”

Garizabalo was taken for a psych evaluation, and later charged with misdemeanor battery. BART officials say they're requesting an order to ban him from their stations. He couldn't be reached for comment.

Bullard, meanwhile, doesn't regret stepping in — but is shrugging off the suggestion that he’s a hero.

“It’s OK, but I wasn’t looking for that,” Bullard said. “I was just doing it because that’s what’s right.”