Some Heroes Don't Wear Capes. They Wear Chick-fil-A Uniforms

Mykel Gordon praised for helping woman with baby during alleged carjacking in Okaloosa County, Fla.
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 15, 2022 11:30 AM CDT
Cops: Chick-fil-A Worker Took Down Wannabe Carjacker
William Branch.   (Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office)

A fast-food employee saved the day this week during a terrifying alleged carjacking attempt in Florida. Per a release from the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office, a woman was getting her baby out of her car Wednesday in the parking lot of a Chick-fil-A in Fort Walton Beach when she says a man approached her with a stick and ordered her to hand over her keys. The victim says the man then reached over and snatched the keys off her waistband and climbed into the car.

That's when she says she started screaming, and an employee, IDed by Chick-fil-A management as Mykel Gordon, ran out to help, reports CNN. TMZ calls what happened next akin to a "wild MMA takedown," as Gordon physically intervened and started tussling with the suspect, IDed as 43-year-old William Branch of DeFuniak Springs by the sheriff's office, which has posted video of part of the confrontation.

Within a few seconds, others ran to assist Gordon, who the sheriff's office says was punched in the face by Branch as they struggled. He's said to not be seriously injured. Matthew Sexton, the operator of that Chick-fil-A location, tells CNN he's "grateful" for Gordon's actions, adding, "I couldn't be prouder of his incredible act of care." Branch, meanwhile, was arrested and charged with carjacking with a weapon and battery, per authorities. (More Chick-Fil-A stories.)

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