FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Fort Lauderdale police passed out fliers Friday in hopes that someone recognizes the man they say kidnapped and raped a woman last weekend, and authorities believe the same man might have struck again overnight.
According to authorities, the kidnapping occurred around 5 a.m. Saturday in the 100 block of Southwest Third Avenue in downtown Fort Lauderdale.
The victim has since been located, but the suspect remains on the loose.
Police said a man and a woman were sitting in a car just before 5:20 a.m. Saturday in a parking lot when they were approached by an unknown Black male who was armed with a gun.
The victims told police the suspect demanded the man’s property. At some point, the man got out of the car and the suspect jumped into the driver’s seat and drove away with the woman still sitting in the passenger seat, authorities said.
According to police, the woman was able to call 911 around 7:30 a.m. She was then found alone in the vehicle on Interstate 95 near Oakland Park Boulevard.
“It is believed that at some point, the suspect exited the vehicle prior to the victim entering the driver’s seat and driving away,” a news release from the FLPD stated. “The vehicle then became disabled on southbound I-95.”
According to detectives, the suspect drove around with the victim for about two hours, stopping at an ATM to withdraw money from her account and raping her.
Police confirmed that the woman was transported by Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue to Broward Health Medical Center, where she was treated for non-life-threatening injuries. She was released from the hospital Saturday afternoon.
Police said another carjacking was reported overnight from the same Himmarshee area, with several similarities.
“We do not know for a fact that this incident is related or done by the same suspect, but we are investigating all possibilities,” FLPD spokeswoman Casey Liening said. There are a lot of similar circumstances in this incident that relate to the Saturday incident, such as an armed carjacking, armed kidnapping, two hours in length approximately, and it all started here in downtown Fort Lauderdale.”
Police said the most recent victim was a man. They said he was not sexually assaulted, but was beaten and robbed.
According to authorities, the description of the carjacker that was provided by the victim was very similar to the description of the suspect in the first incident.
Anyone with information about either case is asked to call Detective Jennifer Saint Jean at 954-828-5570, Detective Jackie Sanchez at 954-828-5539, or Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS (8477).