Chick-fil-A worker praised after rushing to stop carjacker who attacked mom in Florida parking lot

Scott Gleeson, USA TODAY
·2 min read

Mykel Gordon may have a day job as a worker at a Chick-fil-A restaurant in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

But he's moonlighting as a "Good Samaritan" rescuer.

During his Chick-fil-A shift, Gordon rushed to the aid of a woman and her baby as she was getting her car hijacked – putting himself at risk and getting seriously hurt by the assailant – before leading to the hijacker's arrest, the Okaloosa County (Fla.) Sheriff's Department said in a statement.

According to the police report, a man wielding a stick approached a woman and her child, yanked her keys from her waistband and opened the vehicle's door. The woman screamed for help.

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That's when Gordon came to the rescue, rushing to intervene. After the physical altercation between Gordon and the assailant, other witnesses followed Gordon's lead and came to help. Video footage shows the tussle. Gordon was able to keepthe suspect subdued until authorities arrived.

The suspect was a 43-year-old man identified as William Branch, who was charged with carjacking with a weapon and battery.

"A major shout-out to this young man for his courage," the sheriff's department said in the statement.

Uniquely, this isn't the first time Gordon has played the part of a rescuer for someone at the Chick-fil-A restaurant. Back in 2018, Gordon was credited with helping to save a 17-year-old girl who had a crane fall on her car. At the time, the rescue was praised as a "miracle," according to the Northwest Florida Daily News.

Gordon said at the time: "My step dad is a military man and I grew up doing what he was doing. When this happened I knew exactly what to do because of him. I thank God."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida Chick-fil-A worker saves woman, baby in attempted carjacking