West Shore RCMP say a carjacking turned dangerous after the owner of the vehicle was dragged approximately 100 feet before the thief crashed, then continued driving at a high rate of speed.
RCMP allege Glenn George, 56, stole a 2002 Mazda Protégé from a Shell gas station in View Royal, located at 498 Island Hwy., on Sunday, Oct. 2.
Mounties received multiple calls for service and, once on scene, learned that the owner of the car tried to stop the theft by grabbing onto George, who then began driving and dragging the owner approximately 100 feet.
“When he tried to flee, I was able to catch up,” John Lord, the owner of the car, told CHEK News in an interview. “I reached in, put him in a headlock and he took off. He floored it into a van, which was in the gas station parking lot.”
Lord suffered multiple injuries including a mild concussion, broken ribs and road rash and was taken to hospital for treatment but has since been released. He told CHEK News on Tuesday that he’ll be forced to be off work while he recovers.
Damage to John Lord’s Mazda is shown after a violent carjacking in View Royal. (Submitted)
In a news release Tuesday, RCMP say George crashed the car into a parked camper van but continued driving along Island Highway at a high rate of speed, swerving into oncoming traffic.
George then allegedly crashed into a second vehicle, a Volkswagen Golf, whose driver followed him and called police to alert officers of his whereabouts.
After coming to a stop on Prince Road in View Royal, George was surrounded by witnesses who prevented him from leaving the scene, RCMP noted in the release.
Insp. Stephen Rose, Officer in Charge of Operations at West Shore RCMP, says police are still investigating the incident. Rose is thanking those who helped prevent George from fleeing.
“Their brave actions no doubt prevented further harm from being caused. It is important to reflect on how dangerous car thefts can be,” he said.
“In this case, the owner of the vehicle sustained injuries while trying to prevent his vehicle from being stolen. If you find yourself in a similar situation, please find your way to [a] safe place and call police for help.”
George is not a resident of the West Shore but is known to police, and was taken into custody without incident before making his first appearance in court on Tuesday.
RCMP say he was charged with theft of a motor vehicle, assault with a weapon, operating a vehicle in a dangerous manner, and failing to stop a vehicle and provide information after it was used in a dangerous manner.
George remains in custody until his next court appearance on Oct. 13.
CHEK News
