Decatur Police Search for Carjacking Suspect

Decatur police are looking for the man responsible for stealing a car from a woman after threatening her and a friend with a firearm on Monday morning.

A woman and her friend were standing outside her 2009 Toyota Matrix in the 200 block of East Ponce de Leon Avenue at 3:20 a.m. when they were approached by a man who told them to step away from the vehicle, police spokeswoman Sgt. Jennifer Ross said. The women abandoned the vehicle only after the victims noticed the grip of a handgun the man may have been carrying.

After the women stepped away from the vehicle, the man got in the car and drove east down Sycamore Street and called out to two other men at the intersection of Sycamore and N. Candler streets, Ross said. The vehicle was last seen heading the wrong way down N. Candler Street.

The woman’s cell phone was still in the Toyota, and police used its GPS tracking feature to follow the vehicle south on Candler Street and then westbound on Interstate 20. The vehicle was eventually discovered in the 2400 block of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Drive, Ross said.

The primary suspect is described as a black male with medium complexion between 18-23 years old, with a slender/muscular build. He was last seen wearing a black or gray hoodie, dark/black jeans, and possibly armed with a firearm. The two other males were described only as wearing a dark hoodie and dark pants.

If you have any information about this incident, please contact Crime Stoppers Greater Atlanta by calling 404-577-TIPS (8477), texting “CSA Tip” to CRIMES (274637), or bysubmitting a tip online. All tips can be made anonymously.