A Viral Video Shows A Florida Chick-Fil-A Worker Stop A Carjacking & He's Now A Local 'Hero'
The man tried taking the car from a woman holding a baby.
The outside of a Chick-Fil-A. Right: The Carjacker.
A viral video posted yesterday to the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office Facebook page shows a Florida Chick-Fil-A employee tackling a 43-year-old man who tried to steal a car from a woman holding a baby.
According to the OCSO, the attempted carjacker, William Branch, came up to the mother in the parking lot with a stick and demanded her keys as she was getting her child out of the vehicle.
Officials wrote in a statement that he grabbed the waistband of her pants and got inside the vehicle. That's when the worker ran over and saved the day after the victim screamed for help.
Branch punched the staff member in the face, but, as you can see in the video, he ended up in a headlock and stayed on the ground until the police arrived.
You can hear a customer with a baby scream at the man on the ground: "She had a baby in her hands, how dare you scare her like that!"
The clip taken at the Chick-Fil-A located at 743 Beal Parkway Northwest, Fort Walton Beach, FL, received over 406K views and 2.1K comments. The community is giving praise and accolades to the employee, being deemed a local "hero".
Some of the comments read:
"That was a very brave young man! Thank to the parents of his raised a great son/young man that lot of us need to follow his awesome quick thinking to help someone in desperate need!! His employer should give him the employee of the year!!!"
"Way to go young man, you are a hero!!"
"Awesome job and WAY TO BE SO BRAVE!!"
Authorities confirmed that Branch was charged with carjacking with a weapon and battery.
The worker has not been identified, though he told the Okaloosa Sheriff's Office that the suspect had been involved in a previous incident recently.
This article's right-hand cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.