An Oklahoma high school principal “saved kids’ lives” last week when he tackled a gunman and was shot in the leg in the process, the local police chief said.

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In a statement, Pauls Valley High School Principal Kirk Moore expressed gratitude for “an outpouring of love and support” following last Tuesday’s incident at the school, about 60 miles south of Oklahoma City.

In an arrest affidavit, investigators said Victor Lee Hawkins, 20, armed with two semiautomatic handguns, walked into the lobby of the school that afternoon, told everyone to hit the ground and tried to shoot one student but was thwarted by a malfunctioning weapon.

After he cleared the malfunction, he opened fire on another student but missed, according to the document.

The two students pleaded for mercy and were allowed to leave, with other pupils following, as Moore charged out of a nearby door and tackled Hawkins from behind, pinning his face down on a bench, removing a gun from his hand and holding him down with the help of an assistant principal, according to the affidavit and school security video.

Hawkins, a former student at the school, described Moore as someone he “did not like,” prosecutors alleged, and said he “wanted to conduct his own school shooting like the Columbine shooters did,” referring to the 1999 high school shooting in Colorado that ended in the deaths of 14 victims and two teenage shooters.

Investigators said Hawkins admitted going to the school with two firearms belonging to his father, which he is alleged to have taken without permission.

He said his intention was to kill students, faculty members, Moore and himself, the affidavit said.

During his confrontation with the suspect, Moore was shot in a leg, authorities said, and he was hospitalized.

In his statement, released Friday, Moore said that he is “healthy and recovering” and that he looks forward to returning to work as soon as he is able.

Pauls Valley Police Chief Don May said in an interview that Moore’s football-like takedown thwarted a tragedy.

“It doesn’t surprise me the actions that he took, but it is amazing, the actions that he took,” he said. “There’s not a doubt in my mind that he saved kids’ lives.”

Hawkins was in custody Tuesday at the Garvin County Detention Center in lieu of $1 million bail, according to jail records.

He has been charged with shooting with intent to kill, feloniously pointing a firearm and carrying a weapon to a public assembly, according to court records. His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Hawkins was scheduled to be in court May 8 for a preliminary hearing conference, according to court records.

In his statement, Moore credited training for his reaction.

“Like so many educators around the country, we prepare for these events through training and careful assessment of the threats,” he said. “I am grateful that my instincts and training, as well as God’s hand, were available to me.”