Uber driver carjacked in Bradenton
A Bradenton Uber driver had surprise customers who police say choked him, stole his car and totaled it in Pasco County.
Just before 5 p.m. Tuesday, the 67-year-old Uber driver dropped off customers in the 1900 block of 14th Street West in Bradenton, when 19-year-old John P. Suggs and 27-year-old Michelle W. Bager hopped in. He wasn’t expecting them, according to the Bradenton Police Department.
Suggs asked the victim for a ride to the 1900 block of 19th Avenue West and the driver agreed. When the car stopped, police said Suggs choked and hit the driver and pushed him out of the car.
After the police department put out an alert for the car and the suspects, the Uber driver’s car was found in Pasco County, where sheriff’s deputies chased them before the car crashed into a wooded area.
Deps. Bingham and Pini and k-9s Benco and Yogi assisted in a pursuit where 1 suspect fled from Bradenton Police Department jurisdiction. pic.twitter.com/X8LpcHZgkq
— Pasco Sheriff (@PascoSheriff) December 14, 2016
Suggs was taken to a Pasco County hospital with injuries and couldn’t speak with detectives. Bager spoke to detectives and confessed to the crime, according to police.
Suggs was charged with carjacking and aggravated battery, and Bager was charged with carjacking.
The victim was taken to Manatee Memorial Hospital and was treated for cuts and road rash all over his body.
Anyone with any information on the incident can contact Bradenton police Detective Fredy Ordonez at 941-932-9327 or Crime Stoppers by calling 866-634-8477 or going online at www.manateecrimestoppers.com.
This story was originally published December 14, 2016 at 10:31 AM with the headline "Uber driver carjacked in Bradenton."