POMPANO BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) - An elderly man faced a terrifying and dangerous situation after he was almost carjacked by somebody hiding in the backseat of his car in Pompano Beach.
Broward Sheriff’s Office said the 75-year-old man entered his car after spending much of his Tuesday evening at the American Legion post in the area of Southwest Second Street and South Flagler Avenue.
After driving off, a man hiding in the backseat popped out and grabbed the elderly man by the neck and told him to keep driving.
As they both passed an open gas station, deputies said he swerved into it in an attempt to get somebody’s attention.
The car ended up crashing into a parked car, and that’s when a bystander began taking cellphone video. The suspect, later identified by deputies as 35-year-old Michael Maxwell, attempted to drive off in the wrecked car but failed to do so.
Maxwell is then seen walking away from the car with a bag over his head as cameras kept rolling.
“All of a sudden the driver of the car started screaming, ‘Let me go! Let me go! Let me get out of my car!'” the bystander said, speaking exclusively to 7News. “His car door opened, this man fell out of his car but was being held in with his seat belt.”
BSO deputies set up a perimeter and eventually took Maxwell into custody.
He now faces a slew of charges including carjacking and aggravated battery of an elderly person. He’s being held at the Broward County Main Jail without bond.
Officials said Maxwell had been in and out of jail with a criminal record dating back to 2004.
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