LAKE WALES, Fla. — A carjacking suspect who hit the victim with the vehicle before fleeing was arrested by the Lake Wales Police Department (LWPD) after a pursuit on Friday.
According to a LWPD report, Dwayne Edward Williams, 56 of Pompano Beach, had attempted to steal merchandise from a Walmart Supercenter, but fled when confronted by loss prevention employees.
Williams entered the Taylor Groves community in Lake Wales, where he attempted to steal a 2016 Ford Edge. The owner of the vehicle was gathering his mail from the community mailbox.
When Williams got into the vehicle, the victim tried to stop the suspect. Williams, however, accelerated and struck the victim, knocking him to the ground, the report stated. The victim suffered minor injuries.
Shortly after, officers located the vehicle on Lilly Street and attempted to stop Williams. Officers pursued the vehicle to the area of 1st Street and Stuart Avenue. Due to the heavy crowds in the area, officers executed a PIT maneuver (precision immobilization technique) to stop the vehicle, the report stated. Williams was then apprehended.
Williams was charged with carjacking, fleeing to elude, battery on a law enforcement officer, resisting an officer with violence and felony retail theft.
It's been one year since Hurricane Milton impacted our community. Tampa Bay 28 revisited some of Tampa Bay's hardest hit areas to show the recovery and the work that still needs to be done.
