ST. CHARLES, Mo. – Carjackers take advantage of the winter weather to steal a St. Charles woman’s vehicle at gunpoint. It’s the kind of crime that could have happened to almost anyone of us.
The 24-year-old victim was warming up her car around 5 a.m. Wednesday and cleaning the snow from the windows when the two suspects appeared.
“When they displayed the handgun, she was scared to death,” St. Charles Police Lt. Tom Wilkison said.
Police said it happened in the Country Club Apartment complex as the woman was preparing to go to work. The crime has really shaken up her neighbors.
“It’s sad. And who would think in this type of weather?” said Carla Marr. “You’re so vulnerable this time of year.”
The victim was cleaning the snow from her car when at gunpoint the thieves demanded her car and left the scene but not before neighbors say they hit three cars including this one, owned by the victim’s boyfriend.
“I’m probably going to have my boyfriend come out with me now after finding this out because I leave for work early a lot too,” neighbor Alexis Siltman said.
Police commended the victim and how she handled the frightening ordeal.
“Property is not worth fighting for. She absolutely did the right thing,” Wilkison said. “She was extremely scared when they announced the robbery.”
A photo of the victim’s car shows a 2015 Ford Fusion. It has a Lindenwood Univeristy sticker on the back. It carries a Missouri license plate TB1X9N. Call police if you see it.
“It’s crazy,” another neighbor said. “Some days I let my kids warm my car up. I’m not doing that anymore.”
Lt. Wilkison is hoping license plate reader technology, which many departments own, will help spot the stolen car.
The victim declined to be interviewed on camera. She said she did not run to her apartment after the car theft but instead hid behind a building so the suspects would not know where she lives.
She also said police told her that her wallet was found far away in a park near Spanish Lake.
