Gutsy motorist faces down gun-toting carjacker, gamely fights back against thug with his bare hands



A gutsy motorist faced down a gun-toting carjacker in Maryland earlier this week and successfully fought back with his bare hands.

Anne Arundel County Police said a male brandishing a firearm approached a 32-year-old man around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at a Marathon gas station in the 5700 block of Ritchie Highway in Brooklyn Park and demanded his car keys. Brooklyn Park is about 20 minutes south of Baltimore.

'Good. Fight back against thugs.'

Police said the victim initially complied but then quickly rushed the suspect, causing him to fall backward, after which the suspect's gun discharged.

The bullet struck the windshield of the victim’s vehicle, police said, adding that the suspect then fled the scene on the back of a black moped another unidentified person was driving.

Officers conducted a search of the area but couldn't find the suspects, police said, adding that the victim did not report any injuries.

Northern District detectives are investigating and request that those with information to contact 410-222-6135 or the Tip Line at 410-222-4700.

How are observers reacting?

Commenters underneath WMAR-TV's Facebook post about the incident seemed please with the motorist's actions:

  • "Good job," one commenter said. "Tired of criminals terrorizing people."
  • "Good," another user declared. "Fight back against thugs."
  • "Outstanding," another user exclaimed.
  • "The question is: WHY does the average citizen have to even deal with this level of crime???" another commenter wondered.
  • "The wrong 'leaders' and legislators are in office," another user wrote. "The Constitution states that we have a right to protect ourselves, but we also have the right to feel reasonably safe. Maryland residents are being failed miserably and gaslighted."

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Democratic Rep. Cuellar carjacked in Washington, DC



U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) was carjacked Monday evening in the Navy Yard area of Washington, D.C., roughly a mile away from the U.S. Capitol.

Police indicated the incident took place around 9:30 p.m. at New Jersey Avenue and K Streets, reported the Washington Post.

"As Congressman Cuellar was parking his car this evening, 3 armed assailants approached the Congressman and stole his vehicle. Luckily, he was not harmed and is working with local law enforcement," Jacob Hochberg, Cuellar's chief of staff, said in a statement.

DC Alerts indicated that the suspects were black males wearing all-black clothing and had stolen a white Honda with Texas tags, which Hochberg indicated has since been recovered.

According to the New York Times, the congressman's iPad and iPhone had also been taken.

The U.S. Capitol Police reportedly now have investigators working with the Metropolitan Police on the case.

In response to Cuellar's carjacking, Utah Sen. Mike Lee wrote, "My friend, @RepCuellar (D. TX), became the victim of a crime tonight in what's considered a nice part of D.C. D.C. is dangerous. Something's gone terribly wrong here—for far too long. Congress has the sole power to make D.C.’s laws, and must intervene."

Tom Fitton, the president of Judicial Watch, similarly suggested that "this crisis in our nation's capital is, under the US Constitution, the responsibility of Congress. DO SOMETHING!"

Cuellar, a supporter of the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act who has family in law enforcement, is the latest victim of a trend in the Democrat-run city that is getting aggressively worse.

Metropolitan Police Department records indicate motor vehicle theft is up 106% this year over 2022, with 5,398 reports of stolen vehicles.

Most types of crime are actually up in the city such that even the consulate for crime-ravaged Mexico has warned its nationals to "take precautions" in the city due to "a significant increase in crime in areas previously considered safe," reported ABC News.

Murders, of which there have been 215 already this year, are up 37%. Sex abuse is up 3%. Assaults with dangerous weapons are up 2%. Robberies, of which the city has seen over 2,600 in 2023, are up 68%. General theft is up 22%. Arson is up 125%.

Cuellar's carjacking is not the first time in recent months that a Democratic lawmaker has fallen victim to the crime now devouring D.C.

Rep. Angela Craig (D-Minn.) was attacked inside the elevator of her apartment building in February, reported Politico.

The deranged attacker, later identified as 26-year-old Kendrick Hamlin, entered the elevator along with the congresswoman, did some push-ups, then began punching Craig in the face and grabbing her neck. Craig reportedly escaped by dousing the suspect with hot coffee and then bolting.

Hamlin, accused of also attacking the two police officers who ultimately arrested him, pleaded guilty in June to assaulting Craig.

Other workers on the Hill have similarly been caught up in the worsening trend.

One of Sen. Rand Paul's aides was "brutally attacked in broad daylight" in March, reported NPR. The staffer, Phillip Todd, was stabbed multiple times and would likely have perished had it not been for the intervention of a friend.

The Hill reported that a staffer for Republican Rep. Brad Finstad (Minn.) was attacked in June outside his home, blocks away from the U.S. Capitol building.

The staffer, left with minor injuries, told MPD that "while walking home two males wearing black hoodies pushed him to the ground and pointed a black hand gun at him."

After D.C. marked its 200th murder earlier this month, Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser, who has been at odds in recent months with soft-on-crime leftists on the D.C. Council, said the District was having a "bad year," reported the Washington Times.

This "bad" and ostensibly ever-worsening year might have something to do with the precedent set in 2022 by Matthew Graves, the Biden-appointed U.S. attorney for the District, who the Washington Examiner indicated had declined to prosecute nearly 70% of the people arrested by police.

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'Get out before I kill you!' Carjacker presses gun against Uber driver's head — but victim doesn't allow things to go down without a fight



Video captured inside a vehicle in Houston shows a carjacker pressing a gun against an Uber driver's head and ordering him to "get out before I kill you!"

However, KRIV-TV reported that the driver wasn't about to let the crime proceed without a fight.

What are the details?

While the crime took place Oct. 18 last year, Houston Police Robbery released video of the terrifying encounter Tuesday.

KRIV said the driver — named Dovran — picked up two riders around 4 p.m. near Westheimer and South Voss Roads. The station said that during the ride, the pair changed their drop-off location to an apartment complex on Dunvale Road.

But when the driver reached that location, things turned violent, KRIV said.

One of the suspects — who wasn't wearing a mask over his face — reached forward and tried to grab Dovran's phone.

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @hpdrobbery

Then the second suspect — who was wearing blue surgical mask — took things further.

"The second one put a gun to my head," Dovran recalled to the station.

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @hpdrobbery

At that point, the first rider is seen exiting the vehicle — and Dovran told KRIV that the first rider "pulled the driver's door, and tried to pull me out, but I was holding tight."

Despite a gun being held to his head, Dovran battled back.

The station said a struggle ensued, and Dovran managed to drive off — except the gunman was still in the back seat.

"He was holding a gun to my head, he was screaming, 'Stop the car, or I'll shoot you,'" Dovran recounted to the station. "I didn't stop, and then lucky for me, he decided to jump out."

Here's video of what unfolded in the car. Content warning: Language:

\u201cDRAMATIC VIDEO!! We need your help to identify the suspects wanted in an armed robbery of a rideshare drive on Oct. 18 at 2929 Dunvale.\n\nIf you recognize them, please call @CrimeStopHOU w/info. @houstonpolice \n\nFull story at https://t.co/eJba6a6DG5\u201d
— Houston Police Robbery (@Houston Police Robbery) 1672763474

KRIV said Dovran sustained only a few scratches, and a station reporter asked him how he managed to fight back and refuse the carjacker's orders with a gun pressed against his head.

"I don't know, I didn't think about it," he told the station, adding that it still was "scary."

Image source: KRIV-TV video screenshot

Asked if he'd do anything differently with hindsight, Dovran told KRIV, "No."

Dovran still drives for Uber but told KRIV he's being more cautious about whom he picks up and where he does it.

Crime Stoppers is offering $5,000 for any tips leading to the suspects' arrests, the station said.

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @hpdrobbery

Image source: Twitter video screenshot via @hpdrobbery

Anything else?

The station said Uber issued the following statement: "The actions of the riders shown in the video were chilling to watch, and we are grateful the driver wasn’t injured. We removed the rider’s [sic] access and have reached out to the driver to offer support. We look forward to assisting police in identifying those responsible."

KRIV noted that Uber recently rolled out a rider verification feature to add an extra layer of protection for drivers, saying that if a driver feels unsafe, the driver can end the ride immediately.

Carjacker fights with woman, gets into her vehicle. Witness pulls crook from driver's seat — and pins him to ground until police arrive.



A carjacking witness wasted no time gawking at the crime Sunday morning in a California beach town — or worse, recording video to post on social media.

Instead, he decided to get directly involved.

What went down?

Police in Grover Beach — which is about 90 minutes northwest of Santa Barbara — responded to a call about a disturbance at the train station just before 6:30 a.m., KSBY-TV reported.

Sergio Deharo, a 26-year-old from Azusa, tried to carjack a woman's vehicle, the station said. The man pushed the woman away from her car, the Paso Robles Daily News said.

However, the woman fought back, trying everything from pushing Deharo away and even throwing hot coffee at him, KSBY noted.

But despite the battle the victim waged, authorities told KSBY Deharo was able to get into the driver’s seat and start the vehicle.

And that's when a witness who heard the noise stepped in to help, the station said.

What happened next?

Not only did the witness remove Deharo from the car, the Daily News said he pinned the would-be carjacker to the ground until police arrived.

Deharo — who was on parole at the time of the incident — was arrested and booked into San Luis Obispo County Jail on charges of attempted carjacking, resisting arrest, and parole violation, KSBY reported in an earlier story. His bond was set at $150,000, the station added.

The station said it hasn't been able to track down the man who stopped the carjacking.

Anything else?

Jongkeun Han visits the train station about twice a week and told KSBY that news of the carjacking attempt puts him on edge since he sometimes arrives early in the morning and sometimes "very late at night."

Cherie Wais — owner of the Monarch Grove Winery, which is right next to the train station — added to KSBY that even though she's experienced only a handful of serious crimes over the last eight years, the attempted carjacking "doesn't really surprise me."

Another Philly carjacker gets tables turned on him: Pizza delivery driver — with gun pointed at him — pulls his own gun and shoots thug six times.



Crooks in Philadelphia apparently aren't paying attention to the news.

Because yet another lawbreaker — who likely figured it would be easy pickings to scare a motorist into handing over car keys — just got the tables turned on him.

What are the details?

Police said a 39-year-old pizza delivery driver was in the 3300 block of H Street in the Kensington neighborhood just after 7:30 p.m. Thursday when an armed carjacker approached him, WXTF-TV reported.

Then the suspect allegedly pointed a gun at the delivery driver and demanded his car, police told the station.

But the driver wasn't about to become a victim — and had a different kind of delivery up his sleeve.

Because at that moment the driver pulled out his own gun and fired multiple rounds at the suspected carjacker, authorities told WXTF. According to WPVI-TV, the driver hit the suspect six times.

Philadelphia Police Inspector DF Pace added to WPVI that the suspect returned fire, but the driver wasn't injured.

What happened next?

The 23-year-old suspect was taken to a hospital by a private vehicle and placed in extremely critical condition, WPVI said. Police added to WXTF that he was being held as a prisoner.

Two people who were with the suspect also were being held and questioned, WPVI said.

The driver had a permit to carry a concealed firearm, police told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Increase in Philly carjackings — and drivers fighting back

The first month of 2022 has seen a surge in Philadelphia carjackings, as well as a noticeable pattern of some drivers successfully fighting back:

There already have been more than 90 carjackings so far in the city this year, WPVI said, adding that in 2021 there were more than 750.

Tables turn on another Philly carjacker — only 16 years old — as motorist has his own gun and critically wounds young crook. And observers are cheering.



Last week a Lyft driver in Philadelphia — licensed to carry a gun — opened fire on a couple of would-be carjackers, shooting and wounding them both. Police caught the two crooks and got them to a hospital. The Lyft driver was unharmed.

Well, a similar scenario played out in the City of Brotherly Love on Thursday night.

What went down?

A 60-year-old man was exiting his car in the 6500 block of Cherokee Street in the neighborhood of Mount Airy just after 8 p.m. when two young carjackers approached him, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small told WXTF-TV.

One of the carjackers demanded the man's key and pointed a gun at his face, police told the station.

Well, the man staring down the barrel of that gun refused to be a victim and just so happened to have his own gun on him. And he had no problem using it.

With that the man pulled out his gun — hich he has a permit to carry, police said — and a shootout ensued, WXTF reported.

A better aim

The carjackers fled, the station said, but the man told officers he shot one of the carjackers.

Soon police were called to the 6700 block of Germantown Avenue — only three blocks from the shootout location — and found a 16-year-old in a Jeep bleeding heavily from the legs, Small told WXTF.

Officers drove the kid to a hospital, where he was listed in critical condition due to blood loss, police told the station, adding that the 60-year-old later identified the teen as the gunman who tried to carjack him.

Police told WXTF that the targeted motorist wasn't injured despite several shots fired toward his face.

You don't say?

Oh, and it turns out that the Jeep in which the shot carjacker was found was stolen during a carjacking last weekend, police told the station, adding that a shoe found at the scene of Thursday night's failed carjacking matched a shoe in the Jeep that police found.

No word on whether the carjacker was licensed to carry or whether his gun is properly registered.

Carjacking spike

More than 750 carjackings were reported in Philadelphia last year — a 34% increase over 2020, WXTF. But the station said at least 90 carjackings have been reported in just the first two weeks of 2022.

The station said another armed driver fired several times through his window when an armed suspect approached his window last week in what police believe was yet another carjacking attempt. WXTF said the 18-year-old suspect was shot several times and was later charged in the incident.

How are folks reacting to latest armed Philly motorist to fight back?

Quite a few commenters on a WXTF reporter's tweet about the foiled Thursday night carjacking — and the wounded perp — were very happy about the outcome:

  • "BREAKING: Criminal went ahead and f***ed around and shortly afterwards proceeded to find out," one commenter chirped.
  • "GOOD! When will these ASSHOLES learn. I do NOT care how old a carjacker is. They deserve what they get. So instead of getting the car he got shot. You don’t always get what you want. Sooo glad the owner had a gun," another user declared. "I really do not like saying that. But these days you have to."
  • "Philly Hero," another user said.
  • "There seems to be a trend happening. Carjackers are getting shot," another commenter observed. "Watch. Carjackings will decrease because citizens are defending themselves and the DAO and/or @PPDCommish will come out and take credit for doing nothing."
  • Another user said "2022 could be the year the citizen take back Philadelphia from the thugs and the relaxed @DA_LarryKrasner."
  • "Good thing he was 'permitted' to protect his self from POS criminals," another commenter said. "Self defense is a right that should just be...not 'permitted.'"
  • "Another legend protecting himself from violent gang culture!" another user wrote. "Address this lifestyle thru community education/counseling & APPROPRIATE consequences or the indoctrination of these youngsters will never stop."

Carjacker sticks gun in woman's face. But victim is a concealed carrier — and she opens fire, sending crook running for his life: 'He looked surprised'



A woman told WBBM-TV she had just exited a Chase Bank on South Michigan Avenue in Chicago on Monday afternoon with some cash in hand when a heart-stopping encounter took place.

"I had just come out of the bank and was sitting in my car about to lock my door to pull off and leave," the unnamed woman told the station in an audio-only interview.

Then a would-be carjacker "opened my door and put a gun in my face,” the woman told WBBM.

What happened next?

But this particular crook had a big problem on his hands.

Turns out his victim is licensed to carry a concealed gun, the station said — and she was packing and ready.

“And when he saw me get mine, he looked surprised," the woman told WBBM. "And I started shooting, and he started running — he ran.”

The woman told the station she doesn't recall how many times she fired: "Hell no. Just started busting."

She added to WBBM that she doesn't know if she hit the crook — only that the shots were fired at very close range.

Afterward the station said she reversed her Nissan Versa, pulled up right outside the bank, and ran inside for help. A bullet casing from the shots the woman fired remained on the ground hours later, WBBM said.

Image source: WBBM-TV video screenshot

'Thank God I had my gun, or I’d probably be dead right now'

She also was thankful she had a gun for protection.

“Thank God I had my gun, or I’d probably be dead right now,” the woman told the station.

She also told WBBM she hopes that lawbreakers consider that their victims might be ready for them with lethal force.

“I pray every night that I don’t have to shoot nobody, but if I have to, then I’m prepared and ready,” the woman told the station. “So God, I was ready.”

Anything else?

It was unclear late Monday if any of the woman’s shots hit the would-be carjacker, WBBM said, adding that Chicago police were reviewing surveillance video and checking area hospitals to see if any patients were hit by gunfire.