Multi-state carjacking case leads to Valdosta arrests

Terry Richards, The Valdosta Daily Times, Ga.
·2 min read

Jul. 11—VALDOSTA — Police arrested suspects from Valdosta and Florida July 5 in a case involving carjackings, auto theft and shootings.

At about 1:30 a.m., July 5, Valdosta police responded to the 800 block of East Brookwood Place on an E911 call about a robbery at gunpoint, according to a Valdosta Police Department statement released July 11.

The victim told officers four men came into his yard, pointed a gun at him and struck him in the head; the other men took his personal belongings before fleeing in the victim's car, police said.

On July 6, Clearwater, Fla., police and Marion County, Fla., sheriff's detectives reached out to Valdosta police looking for help in a pair of carjackings where the offenders shot at the victims. The getaway car in these incidents was identified as the one stolen from East Brookwood Place, police said.

The three agencies worked together, pooling information, while Valdosta officers found the stolen vehicle behind a home.

On July 7, Valdosta police identified three of the suspects as a pair of Valdosta men, aged 19 and 17, plus a 29-year-old Tampa, Fla., man living in different apartments in the 600 block of East Ann Street, police said.

Detectives determined the offenders had stolen the vehicle in Valdosta, then driven to Clearwater, where they attempted to carjack another victim while shooting at them. The offenders then fled Clearwater, attempting to carjack a victim in Ocala, Fla., while heading back to Valdosta. They shot at the victim in Ocala as well, and the victim was injured, the police said.

The three men were jailed in Lowndes County, charged with felony armed robbery, felony possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony and felony theft by taking, police said.

Detectives from the Clearwater police and the Marion County Sheriff's Office met with Valdosta detectives and conducted their investigations. All three subjects are facing charges in those jurisdictions as well.

"This is a great example of law enforcement agencies working together. All three agencies mutually shared information, communicated and were able to identify these individuals, which resulted in quick arrests," Police Chief Leslie Manahan said in the statement.

Terry Richards is the senior reporter for The Valdosta Daily Times.