VIDEO: Mom Takes Down Would-Be Carjacker in NYC 19 Dec 2018
A mother driving her son to school in New York City took down a would-be carjacker after she discovered an intruder in the driver’s seat of her vehicle.
A video of the incident showed the woman open to the door to her car, yank the suspect out of the driver’s seat, and slam him to the ground to subdue him before authorities arrived.
“He’s lucky I didn’t kill him,” Tihisha Jones told NBC 4 New York. “That’s the thing. He’s lucky I didn’t kill him.”
The 49-year-old woman started her car, a 2005 Honda Pilot, from her apartment in the Melrose section of the Bronx. But when she was about to enter her vehicle to take her son to school, she found an unwelcome surprise in the driver’s seat.
The woman told WABC she found the suspect, Bernado Santiago, 19, in the driver’s seat of her vehicle allegedly playing with the car’s ignition to get the car to start.
The 49-year-old, who still had the keys to the vehicle, opened the passenger door to confront Santiago. Her first attempt to confront the suspect fell flat, as Santiago shut the passenger door on her.
Determined to confront the alleged carjacker, the woman opened the driver’s side door and sprung into action. She pulled the man out of the driver’s seat, threw the suspect on the ground, and held him in place until police arrived.
Police confronted Santiago, who allegedly tried to convince authorities the car was an Uber. Authorities were not convinced, arresting the seemingly intoxicated man on multiple charges.
Santiago was charged with one count of attempted grand larceny, one count of petty larceny and one count of criminal stolen possession of stolen property.