Church deacon attacked while trying to help woman in need

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A church deacon was trying to help a woman in need, but he ended up hospitalized after her attackers turned on him.

Tony Gibson is recovering from multiple injuries, including a shattered leg. The 59-year-old church deacon underwent surgery Wednesday at Ingalls Hospital.

"It's broken in three different places. He has an upper fracture, and he's in a lot of pain," his wife Andrea Gibson said.

Police say he was beaten around noon on Tuesday near 75th and South Shore Drive, just steps from a school.

Gibson's relatives said he was driving by when he stopped to help a woman who he witnessed being attacked.

"One man jumped at him, and then another one got him from behind," Gibson said.

Gibson, 59, works for the Chicago Department of Public Health and for 17 years, he has been a deacon at King of Kings Missionary Baptist Church in Lynwood.

"This gentleman, this deacon to be beaten helping someone, I'm so hurt. I'm hurt, and I'm devastated," said Rev. Roy Yarber, Jr.

Gibson's family is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the attackers. They're hoping to find the woman Gibson helped.

"We're asking her to also come forth also to help us, and we also want to know how she's doing," Gibson said.

Gibson's wife says he faces a long recovery and rehab, and it could be months before he's back at work.