HERNANDO COUNTY, FL. – Two Florida men have been arrested after a carjacking incident in Brooksville Saturday, according to deputies.
On Saturday, just before 9 p.m., Hernando County Sheriff’s deputies responded to the Speedway, located at 26260 Cortez Boulevard in Brooksville, regarding a Carjacking.
Upon arrival, deputies spoke with the vehicle owner, an adult female. The female told deputies she pulled up to a diesel pump on the south side of the building in her 2000 Ford F-250, intending to purchase fuel.
The female and one of her children exited the vehicle and went into the store. The female’s other child waited in the back seat, playing a game on a hand-held device.
Two males jumped in the truck and proceeded to drive away. While still in the parking lot, the males noticed the child in the back seat.
Stopping briefly, the passenger jumped out, opened the back door, and physically pulled the child out of the truck. The child was left in the parking lot. The driver then fled westbound on Cortez Boulevard in the stolen vehicle.
The child ran into the store and located the mother and her other child. The child told the mother what happened and provided a brief description of the driver, including tattoos all over his arm.
“The child was not injured during the event, just very scared,” said HCSO.
Deputies reviewed surveillance footage from the store. The video showed a white male wearing a black t-shirt, light-colored shorts, black shoes, and a black baseball cap entering the driver’s door and driving off.
Due to the height of the truck and the camera angle, deputies were unable to obtain a description of the white male passenger.
The dispatcher provided all units with a description of the stolen vehicle and tag information over the radio.
At approximately 8:59 p.m., Deputies Trevor Jones and Scott Bierwiler spotted the stolen vehicle in the area of Mariner Boulevard and Cortez Boulevard, heading westbound. The deputies notified the dispatcher they had located the vehicle.
The driver of the stolen vehicle proceeded westbound on Cortez Boulevard to Deltona Boulevard, where he turned southbound onto Deltona Boulevard. The deputies, in an unmarked vehicle, followed the stolen vehicle until marked units arrived.
Assuming the driver would flee from law enforcement, deputies requested assistance from the FHP and the HCSO aviation unit.
The driver of the stolen vehicle turned off Deltona Boulevard into a residential area, where he continued to make several turns. At one point, the driver stopped the vehicle in the roadway and attempted to wave the (deputies) unmarked vehicle past him. It was at this time the deputies observed his left arm to be heavily tattooed.
As the deputies did not pass the stolen vehicle, the driver became suspicious and made several more sharp turns, and began to accelerate. The driver of the stolen vehicle reached Northcliffe Boulevard, disregarded the posted stop sign, and proceeded eastbound. The deputies activated their emergency lights and siren.
At the intersection of Northcliffe Boulevard and Deltona Boulevard, the driver of the stolen vehicle turned northbound onto Deltona Boulevard and then made a sudden turn onto Mallard Street, and the driver lost control of the F-250 and came to a stop in a yard on Mallard Street.
The passenger exited the vehicle and fled on foot.
Deputy Jones pursued, on foot, through several backyards. Numerous times, Deputy Jones shouted “Stop, Sheriff’s Office” – the suspect continued to flee. Deputy Jones caught up to the suspect on Juliet Court, where he was placed under arrest.
The driver also fled on foot. Deputy Bierwiler took chase but was unable to locate him.
Deputy Greg Locke arrived on scene with K-9 Argo and began a track for the driver. As the K-9 team was tracking through a wooded area, another deputy located a male walking on Northcliffe Boulevard who matched the description of the driver. The K-9 team tracked to the location where the male was located.
The male was positively identified as the driver of the stolen vehicle and placed under arrest.
The driver of the stolen vehicle was identified as Samuel Christopher Rorah, 28, from Lakeland, who was charged with, Carjacking, Knowingly Drive While License Suspended/Revoked, Resisting Arrest w/o Violence, Bond – $26,500.
The passenger in the stolen vehicle was identified as Toby Gene Barber, 47, from Spring Hill, who was charged with, Carjacking, Resisting Arrest w/o Violence, Bond – $26,000.
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