Teenager Meets With Stranger Who Helped Protect Her During Attempted Carjacking
Apr 19, 2019, 6:40 PM
SOUTH SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — An 18 year old who police said was pulled from her car during an attempted carjacking was able to meet the stranger who stepped in to help her.
Joanna Kingston said she was driving along Main Street with her three younger siblings when she noticed a man in the street.
“I honked my horn to kind of get him out of the road and then the moment I honked my horn, he turned around and went straight towards my car,” Kingston said.
Kingston said she tried to lock her doors, but the man was able to get her door open before she could lock it.
“He started pulling on my arms and I grabbed the steering wheel and wouldn’t get out of the car. After he reached his hand around my neck and kind of pushed right here and pulled me out of the car,” she said.
Kingston said the man then got into the driver’s seat. She said she feared for the safety of her younger siblings in the backseat.
18-year-old Joanna Kingston is reunited with Brad Fritz, the man who pulled his truck in front of her car to block a man who police say tried to carjack her in South Salt Lake on Tuesday. Working on this story for @KSL5TV at 12, 5, and 6. pic.twitter.com/bYGBjouwOt
— Sean Moody (@SeanMoodyKSL) April 19, 2019
“My main goal was to stop him from driving away with the car, because if he drives away with the kids in the back, I’ll probably never see them again,” she said.
That’s when she noticed a large truck, driven by Brad Fritz, had pulled in front of her car and stopped, preventing the car from moving forward.
“I just knew right away it was a carjacking. I said, it ain’t going to happen,” Fritz said.
Kingston said she was able to reach back into the car to pull the keys out of the ignition, preventing the man from getting away.
The incident happened only a couple hundred feet from the South Salt Lake Police Department. Police were on scene within minutes and took the man into custody.
They arrested 27-year-old Christopher Medina-Izarrara for investigation of aggravated robbery, resisting arrest, and disorderly conduct.
Friday morning, Kingston and her family met Fritz at the South Salt Lake Police Department. Kingston’s family wanted to say thank you and get to know Fritz a little better.
“She used her head. She did a very, very outstanding job, saving those kids. Good job,” Fritz told her after they gave him a large fruit basket.
