By Mike Schnitzel
The 27-year-old victim told the Herald that she had just parked her car in
the lot next to 62 West Hawthorne Ave. on July 28, and was gathering her
belongings to go into work when the terrifying incident unfolded.
"I came to the [parking] lot as usual at 9 o'clock," said "Rada," whose
full name is being withheld because she's the victim of a crime. "Then I
saw a man standing about a step away from me with a gun."
The man demanded the victim's 2004 BMW 530, from which she had just
exited. At that point, the victim asked him if she could retrieve her
belongings before he took the car. After thinking for a brief moment, he
demanded the car again, this time displaying his gun more prominently.
"At first, the gun was just at his side, but then he brought it up
further from his side," she said. "It's a very commercial area, so he
probably didn't want to make a scene. The funny thing is that he was very
polite to me."
According to detectives, after stealing the car, the man sped away
westbound on West Hawthorne before running a light at the Hicks Street
intersection and going southbound toward Sunrise Highway.
Police said the carjacking was an isolated incident and not part of any
recent pattern. "That's the first carjacking around here in a while," said
Officer Stan Slevinski, a Fifth Precinct crime analyst. "It seems like he
just needed a ride to get away from there, and she just happened to be
there. I think it was a crime of opportunity."
Rada said she felt lucky to be alive and unharmed. "I was scared then,"
she said, "but now I'm smiling because I'm not in the hospital, or worse,
dead. But I was scared then.
"He was just interested in getting a ride out of there," she added. "I had
a $1,000 handbag on me, and he didn't take it."
Police have released a composite sketch of the carjacker based on a
description provided by witnesses. Police are searching for a black male,
around 25 years old, 5-feet-9 to 5-feet-11, with a medium build, medium
complexion and black braided cornrows. He was wearing a dark T-shirt and
baggy blue jeans, police said.
Detectives said an investigation is continuing and urged anyone with
information to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-244-TIPS. All callers will
remain anonymous, police said.
