Carjacking Victim Turns Tables on Attacker

A would-be carjacker found out the hard way that a vehicle can prove to be a serious weapon.

At least that was the case in Polk County on Sunday when a woman targeted by an armed thief decided she wasn’t willing to play the role of victim.

The incident in question unfolded in a Publix parking lot off Highway 98 in the Lakeland area, according to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies say a 17-year-old boy armed with a BB handgun went to the parking lot specifically to look for a car to steal. The teen waited in the parking lot for three hours before spotting what he thought was the perfect mark – a black car that was running, an arrest report states.

Armed with that BB handgun, the teen is accused of pulling on the driver’s side door handle in an attempt to gain entry. It was at that point, the teen noticed a woman inside the car.

The woman also saw him, the report said.

Wasting no time, “the victim placed the vehicle in reverse striking (the teen) causing him to flip over the front of the vehicle,” the report said. The woman also laid on the horn, attracting attention to the situation.

Realizing the woman was no easy mark, the teen took off on foot, the report said, ran across Highway 98 South and jumped a wooden fence leading to a nearby home.

The teen ultimately hid out in a shed, but was captured by a Polk County K9. After being treated and released from a nearby hospital, the teen was brought into custody.

Deputies say the same boy confessed to an armed robbery and carjacking that occurred in the same parking lot on Aug. 21. He’s also been connected to another carjacking.

As of Wednesday morning, the teen, who is not being identified by Patch, was charged with one count of armed burglary with assault and battery, two counts of armed robbery with a firearm, one count of attempted armed robbery, one count of attempted armed burglary of an occupied conveyance, two counts of conspiracy to commit armed robbery, one count of tampering with physical evidence and one count of dealing in stolen property.

Sheriff’s deputies have asked the State Attorney’s Office to prosecute him as an adult.

As for the would-be victim, Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd says she handled herself “beautifully,” according to several media reports.

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