Four-time Super Bowl champion Joe Montana rescued one of his grandchildren in a kidnapping attempt, authorities confirmed on Sunday.
Montana and his wife, Jennifer, were at their home in Malibu, California, early on Saturday evening when a 39-year-old woman entered their house. She took the nine-month-old, sleeping in a playpen, before encountering the Montanas, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department said in a statement.
The couple "confronted the female, attempted to de-escalate the situation and asked for the suspect to give back their grandchild," the statement said. It continued: "A tussle ensued and Mrs Montana was able to safely pry the child out of the suspect's arms."
The woman ran off but was apprehended by Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies, who were in the area, after Montana flagged them down.
The statement identified the woman as Sodsai Dalzell and said she was charged with kidnapping and burglary. Bail was set at $150,000 (£117,000), and she was being held on Sunday at the Century Regional Detention Facility in Lynwood, California.
Montana posted a statement on his Twitter account on Sunday, saying: "Thank you to everyone who has reached out. Scary situation, but thankful that everybody is doing well. We appreciate respect for our privacy at this time."
Montana, 64, retired from the NFL in 1995 after 13 seasons with the San Francisco 49ers and two with the Kansas City Chiefs. He led the 49ers to four Super Bowl victories, was a two-time league Most Valuable Player and a three-time first-team All-Pro.
He was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in 2000. Last autumn, he was named in the NFL 100 All-Time Team.