A woman being carjacked while carrying her baby on Wednesday received help from a local hero.
The woman was taking her child out of her car outside a Chick-fil-A in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, when a man approached her with a stick, according to The Washington Post. He then snatched her keys away and entered the vehicle as she screamed out for help.
Those cries were answered by Chick-fil-A worker Mikel Gordon, who witnessed the ordeal and rushed to her aid. Footage shows Gordon getting into an altercation with the man, whom the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office identified in a Facebook post as 43-year-old William Branch.
“The victim was getting the infant out of her car at a restaurant at 743 Beal Parkway when she says Branch approached her wielding a stick and demanding her keys,” the sheriff’s office wrote. “He then grabbed the keys from the waistband of her pants, opened the door, and got inside.”
The one-minute video was filmed by a witness from the safety of their car. It shows Gordon tackling a man to the ground and putting him in a headlock. His colleagues eventually arrived, alongside a woman carrying her baby — who doled out some verbal justice.
“She had a baby in her hand,” the woman screamed. “She had a baby in her hand! How dare you! How dare you scare her like that!”
Footage shows Gordon standing up after winning the fight and placing his hands on the other man to ensure he stayed put. The man remained seated on the concrete without causing problems until authorities placed him in handcuffs.
“A major shout out to this young man for his courage!” the sheriff’s office told the Post.
Gordon had potentially saved somebody’s life before. He was taking orders outside the Fort Walton Beach location in September 2008 when he saw a crane collapse and crash onto a nearby car.
Gordon rushed over and noticed a teenage driver and her friend trapped inside, according to the Northwest Florida Daily News. He told the outlet he carried one of them to safety before bystanders sprung into action to help the other.
“I didn’t have any time to react,” Gordon told the paper. “It was nothing but instinct, and I ran to the car.”
Branch was booked on charges of battery and carjacking with a weapon. While it’s unclear whether Gordon will be promoted for his unrelated heroism, the operator of his Chick-fil-A location, Matthew Sexton, certainly seemed impressed.
“I couldn’t be prouder of his incredible act of care,” he said.
