Carjacking Suspect Dies In Ogden Crash, Investigation Continues
Nov 2, 2019, 9:51 PM | Updated: Nov 3, 2019, 11:08 am
OGDEN, Utah – The investigation continues into a carjacking in Ogden that ended in a car accident.
A witness, who says the suspect barely missed them, is speaking out about her experience.
It all started at Newgate Mall where police say they got a call of a burglary at 9:13 p.m. Friday evening.
The suspect stole a woman’s car then drove to a Maverik, located at 1212 Wall Avenue, where police say he stole a pack of cigarettes.
His rampage ended with him veering onto the wrong side of the road where he crashed into a van near the 900 block of 12th Street.
“He was driving pretty quick down 12th street,” Gabriella Martinez said. “He was pretty much coming at me head on. It was pretty scary.”
Martinez says she was driving westbound on 12th street with her family when she saw headlights coming straight at them.
“I was just sitting there [thinking] ‘what am I going to do?’ so I thought of my son and I just hurried, and I just swerved. I didn’t look at my blind spot, didn’t look to see if anybody was behind me, and I almost ended up crashing into other people on the other lane,” Martinez said.
Martinez said the speeding car barely missed hitting them.
“I was like, let’s follow him, he’s going to kill somebody,” Martinez said. “I was following him just for the purpose of getting his license plate number so I could report it.”
Shortly after, the suspect collided into a van near the 900 block of 12th Street.
“Right when I had said ‘he’s going to kill somebody’ was literally right when we pulled up and saw the smoke. We saw a van that was flipped,” Martinez shared.
Martinez says she and her younger brother jumped out of their car and ran to help along with other witnesses.
“A neighbor come out and was like ‘here is a shovel…’ and my brother grabbed it and stabbed a hole right through that windshield and that’s when they all started ripping at the glass to try to get the guy out,” Martinez shared. “Everybody [told him] ‘cover your face, cover your face’ because there was glass going everywhere.”
Ogden police said the victim in the van suffered minor injuries and was transported to the hospital. The suspect died on scene.
“It was very scary for my brother to see, especially being a 15-year-old trying to help in a situation like that,” Martinez said.
Looking back Martinez says things could’ve been a lot worse.
“I was like no there’s no way I’m letting anything happen to my son today,” Martinez said. “Even though there was one person in that van, it’s still devastating. At least that person from what I’ve heard survived which I’m really happy for.”
Police haven’t released the suspect’s identity yet. They believe he acted alone and there is no immediate threat to the community.
