Armed Carjackers Lead Deputies on a Chase

Update Aug. 8, 9 a.m.: The men arrested in Friday morning’s carjacking have been identified by police as Khalil Holt, 19, and Raheim Johnson, 20, both of Lakeland. They have been charged with armed carjacking, fleeing to elude and resisting arrest without violence.

Earlier:

All she wanted to do was get gas, but two armed carjackers had different plans for a motorist in the Plant City area Friday morning.

The woman was in the process of pumping gas into her 2006 Chevy Malibu at the Circle K on State Road 60 and Highway 39 around 4:15 a.m. when two men, one carrying a gun, approached her and took her ride. The car was spotted a short time later on Lithia Pinecrest Road in the FishHawk area, according to Hillsborough County spokesman Larry McKinnon.

“The deputy followed the car for a distance, allowing additional deputies including HCSO Aviation Unit and a K9 deputy to arrive,” McKinnon wrote in an email to media.

Once backup was in place, the deputy tried to stop the car, but its driver refused to pull over. A chase that lasted about 10 minutes began, but ended when the driver of the stolen car lost control and flipped over in a ditch on S.R. 640, just east of Bonnie Mine Road, in Polk County.

At this point, the men got out of the car and ran into a wooded area. Hillsborough deputies, including a K9 unit, were ready for that, however. With some help from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, they set up a perimeter and chased the men for about a quarter mile before being able to bring both into custody.

Both men, who have not yet been identified, were charged with armed carjacking. One had to be treated for a “minor” dog bite on his leg, McKinnon said.

Deputies found a Kel-Tec 9mm semiautomatic in the Malibu.

The men were being booked into the Polk County jail.