New York man tries to re-steal a Toyota RAV4 with a police officer already in the vehicle
Criminals steal around a million cars, trucks, SUVs, and minivans every year. That means police are constantly looking for stolen vehicles. Typically, when a cop finds a stolen car, they can recover it for the owner or insurance provider. That is unless you’re so hell-bent on getting away in a stolen Toyota RAV4 that you drag a police officer along with you.
Nothing says desperate like trying to steal an already-stolen Toyota RAV4 as a police officer attempts to take it back
Police officers in Rochester arrested a car thief from Irondequoit, New York. While being a car thief is reason enough for a set of handcuffs and a trip to jail, this 38-year-old criminal decided to make things worse. He took an RPD officer along for the ride during his wild and unhinged escape attempt.
See, the first police officer on the scene located the fifth-generation Toyota RAV4. The police officer suspected that the gray SUV was a stolen vehicle and approached it on foot. As the officer arrived at the SUV’s side, the suspect jumped into the driver’s seat and put in drive.
Meanwhile, the Rochester police officer struggled into the car. He reached for the ignition key to shut the SUV off. However, the car thief managed to drive 75 feet before the officer was able to wrestle the Toyota RAV4 to a stop and put it in park. Fortunately for the officer, he didn’t sustain any injuries in the TV show-worthy event.
The runaway driver is looking at several charges. Most notably, authorities charged the New York man with assault on a police officer and reckless endangerment. What’s more, due to the stolen nature of the Toyota RAV4, police charged him with possession of stolen property.
According to WHEC News 10, there was a 32-year-old woman in the car along with the man and the police officer. In addition to her outstanding warrants, police charged her with “unauthorized use of a vehicle.” Still, of the SUVs in the country, a Toyota RAV4 seems a likely target for crimes of theft. After all, Toyota sold over 350,000 RAV4s in the first three quarters of 2024, making it the best-selling SUV in the United States.
