A Chick-fil-A customer in Orlando, Florida, is being hailed a hero after he trusted his gut and rescued a 2-year-old girl from the hands of a rapist.
According to police reports, the witness, whose name is being kept private, told police that he saw something “questionable” in a reflection on the wall tile while standing at the urinal in the Orlando Chick-fil-A.
The reflection was of a small child in the stall with a man in a motorized wheelchair. The child appeared to be bouncing on the man’s lap, and the witness told police he was unsure if the baby was just playing or being raped.
“(The witness) was not sure if the baby was bouncing or if they were having sex,” reported Fox 23 News.
Uneasy about what he was seeing, the witness says he intentionally flushed the toilet to alert the man that he was not alone in the bathroom.
The witness stated, “If he panics, then he must be doing something wrong.”
Sure enough, with the flush of the toilet, the man who police later identified as 35-year-old David Michael Gray, frantically adjusted his clothing and appeared from the stall.
That’s when the witness called out to the restaurant and alerted others of what he’d seen.
“Call the police, a child is being abused in the bathroom,” he reportedly said.
When the witness tried to prevent Gray from leaving the restroom, Gray allegedly pulled a stun gun on him and threatened to kill him.
He then ran over the witness’s foot with his wheelchair as he left the bathroom with the child.
Gray was arrested and charged with sexual battery on a child younger than 12, lewd or lascivious battery, lewd or lascivious molestation of a child younger than 12, lewd or lascivious conduct by a person older than 17, child abuse, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and exposure of sexual organs.
He is being held in the Orange County Jail without bond.
One Chick-fil-A employee told police that Gray patrons the restaurant at least twice a week with a woman and children.
Police were still uncertain how Gray knew the 2-year-old, but a woman who claims to be Gray’s employer told investigators that the 35-year-old is a daycare worker in her home.
One thing is for certain, there’s no telling what Gray would have continued to get away with if it weren’t for that brave witness acting on his instincts.
He gave a voice to the voiceless, and rescued an innocent baby girl from further abuse.
If you know someone who is a victim of child sexual abuse, DON’T stay silent. You don’t have to have proof to report. Visit Darkness to Light: End Child Sexual Abuse to learn more.
