TAMPA, Fla — One person is dead, and a suspect is on the run after a carjacking in Tampa on Saturday, according to police.
It happened just after 8:30 p.m. at the Shell gas station off I-4 and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Police said the suspect shot the passenger, then attacked the driver with a weapon before driving off in the victim's vehicle.
Police said the driver was treated at the scene and is expected to be okay, but the passenger who was shot was taken to the hospital, where he later died.
"That is the key to trying to prevent something like this is you have to be vigilant. You have to be aware of your surroundings," retired police officer Sean O’Leary said.
With 28 years serving in law enforcement, O'Leary told ABC Action News that carjacking is a crime of opportunity and criminals don’t typically want to be noticed.
"When you're paying attention, and you make eye contact with somebody, and you're watching them, it doesn't give them the opportunity to get the upper hand on you," O'Leary added.
He said the second you exit your vehicle, lock your doors and try not to go anywhere you’re not familiar with, especially after dark. O'Leary also said your property isn’t worth your life.
"Let it go. You know you can try and fight back, but, unfortunately, you know, some people who are desperate, some suspects, some criminals who are desperate, are going to result to the worst measure," O'Leary explained.
"I would rather have somebody be alive to file a claim with their insurance company and have to call the police and talk to them than the police having to go to somebody's house and make a notification because that person is dead," O'Leary added.
