Father of 2 killed after saving woman from ex-boyfriend's attack at gas station, who jumped in his F-150 and ran him over, police say

An Ohio father of two lost his life after stepping in to rescue a woman being strangled by her ex-boyfriend at a gas station, according to police and family members.

“He went to intervene and asked the boy to let her go, and in turn, the boy jumped in his truck and ran Billy over,” says Angela Osborn, sister-in-law of victim Billy Grooms, who later died at the hospital after being placed on life support, local Fox affiliate WXIX reports.

“We’re still trying to wrap our mind around the fact his life is gone for saving a young girl who was being strangled,” Osborn tells WXIX.

Authorities have charged Javen Meadows, 22, with strangulation and assault in connection with the May 31 confrontation in Hillsboro. According to court documents cited by WXIX, Meadows followed his ex-girlfriend to a Holtfield gas station on South High Street, rammed her vehicle, and then attacked her.

Police say Meadows approached his ex-girlfriend’s vehicle, grabbed her by the throat, strangled her, and threw her to the ground. He was allegedly kicking and punching her when Grooms stepped in.

“I believe Billy was a hero,” the ex-girlfriend said in a statement. “I believe his actions saved my life. I’ll carry that gratitude with me forever.”

Grooms, who was with his son at the time, approached Meadows during the attack and pulled him off the woman, according to police and family.

“That’s who Billy was,” Amy Grooms, Billy Grooms’ wife, tells WXIX. “He wasn’t a very social person, but the people that knew Billy knew he was compassionate; he cared.”

After Grooms intervened, Meadows allegedly jumped into his Ford F-150 pickup truck and drove straight at him. “He just went straight towards my husband and hit him and dragged him,” Amy Grooms says.

Grooms suffered multiple broken bones and a severe brain injury. Authorities airlifted him to a local hospital, where he was placed on life support; his family made the decision to remove him last week.

“We were trying for hope,” Amy Grooms says. “If we could try to intervene to stop the swelling, but then within days, he was declining.”

Grooms’ act of selflessness extended beyond the gas station: Following his death, he donated his organs to at least five people, WXIX reports.

“If he would have lived through this, I would have said, ‘I love you, babe and you did what was right and what your heart wanted,'” Amy Grooms says. “He would have stepped in for anybody.”