Orange City Police narrative describes end of carjacking spree

DeLand Police said suspect threatened motorists with meat cleaver

By Pat Hatfield
BEACON STAFF WRITER

posted Jun 25, 2008 - 10:55:30am

UPDATED 2:05 p.m., June 25.

Police have identified the suspected carjacker shot June 24 as Daniel P. Hendricks, the same man who robbed Ritter's Towne Pharmacy in Downtown DeLand in April.

Hendricks' last official address was in Enterprise, but he has been known to live with a relative in DeLand, police said.

Hendricks, who is in his early 20s, was arrested in April for a robbery of Ritter's Towne Pharmacy in DeLand, Chief Jeff Baskoff said.

He had just been released from jail June 22, two days before the carjacking spree.

In the incident at Ritter's, Hendricks handed a note to the pharmacy staff that read "Give me Oxycontin 80 mg — I have a gun."

Before he was shot at Four Townes Shopping Center in Orange City, Hendricks led DeLand, Volusia County and Orange City police on a chase from DeLand south to Orange City, commandeering and crashing three vehicles on the way.

Hendricks had pleaded guilty to the robbery charge stemming from the Ritter's case, Linda Pruitt of the State Attorney's Office told The Beacon.

He was sentenced to 90 days in jail and was released June 22. The jail time was supposed to be followed by 12 months of community control, or house arrest. Another 12 months of drug-offender probation would have followed the community-control time, Pruitt said.

* * *

The events leading to the shooting of an armed carjacker June 24 were chaotic and confused, and law-enforcement agencies and the news media continue today to try to piece together the sequence of events.

The brief but destructive car-theft spree began around 12:40 p.m. with the theft of a Stetson University work truck in DeLand, and ended with an Orange City police sergeant shooting the suspect at 12:54 p.m. as he attempted to hijack a fourth vehicle, all within the space of about 15 minutes.

A narrative written by Orange City Police Detective Ken Jones describes the dramatic circumstances of that shooting. It is reprinted, unedited, below.

It is followed by the DeLand Police Department narrative, taken from the Police Log.

Both narratives are unedited, except to break them into paragraphs for easier reading, and occasionally to insert a word in brackets to explain law-enforcement abbreviations:

POLICE NARRATIVES

Narrative by Orange City Detective Ken Jones:

On Tuesday, June 24th, 2008, Det. Sgt. Jason R. Sampsell and I were involved in an incident concerning a white male suspected of carjacking, and possible kidnapping.

At approximately 1245 hours, we heard radio transmissions from VCSO [Volusia County Sheriff's Office] District 2 (LEO) concerning a suspected carjacking near the intersection of New Hampshire and Woodland Blvd. in DeLand. The suspect was said to be in a silver car.

We proceeded to travel toward the center of town in an unmarked Ford Expedition. As we traveled north, the radio transmissions indicated that the suspect was now in a red car, heading south in the northbound lane of Volusia Ave. (US 17-92) near DeLand Ford or Firehouse Road.

The vehicle was said to have significant front-end damage and was possibly hitting other cars. Sgt. Sampsell was driving; he moved our vehicle into the inside lane of the north bound side of S. Volusia Ave.

Within seconds of hearing the transmission concerning the red car, we saw a red car, with extreme front-end damage, traveling south in the southbound lanes. The vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed, swerving in and out of traffic.

I spotted a white male driver, with no shirt on, as the vehicle passed our location. We were near the intersection of Roberts and Volusia.

Sgt. Sampsell completed a U turn and activated the vehicle's emergency lights. I attempted several times to broadcast on the radio, but could not, due to the transmission concerning the activity in DeLand.

I observed the red car speed through a red light at Volusia and Enterprise Road. I observed the red car make a left turn into the Four Townes Shopping Center. The red car struck a northbound blue car and then spun into the grass along the west side of the parking area.

I observed a young male, approx. 10-12 years old, wearing a red shirt, run from the red car, waving his hands.

I observed a white male wearing no shirt, and jeans, run from the red car and run across the parking area in front of Stacey's Buffet.

I was then able to transmit the facts concerning this incident over the radio. Sgt. Sampsell drove our vehicle, and stopped behind a tan pickup truck. I observed the male suspect reaching into the pickup truck and pull an elderly male from the driver's seat. I observed the elderly male either run away or fall between cars.

I then exited our vehicle and ran toward the driver's side of the pickup. I was in a defensive position, weapon drawn, and yelling commands (STOP, POLICE, EXIT THE VEHICLE NOW, STOP POLICE) to the suspect in the truck.

I am not sure how many times I yelled or in what sequence the commands were given.

The truck was running. I observed the truck's backup lights come on and the vehicle proceeded toward me at a high rate of speed. I recall hearing the tires of the truck squealing. I jumped to my left to avoid being hit by the truck.

The truck then struck our vehicle on the passenger side, near the headlight. I continued to yell commands at the suspect.

The truck drove forward at a high rate, and struck a yellow small car. I observed the backup lights on again and the truck moving toward our location again. I then heard 5-6 gun shots. I observed the driver slumping forward in the truck. I informed Sgt. Sampsell that I was going to "go in" and for him to cover me.

I made my way to the driver's door. The suspect was conscious and alert, placing the vehicle in drive and attempting to drive away. As I struggled with the suspect, his foot was pushing the accelerator. The truck then struck another vehicle in front of it.

I struggled with the suspect and managed to get his foot off of the accelerator, and place the truck in park. The suspect then leaned back and struggled for air. It was at this time I saw a knife, lying in the center of the truck or possibly on the passenger seat and the console.

I checked his neck and found a slight pulse and then no pulse. I yelled for Sgt. Sampsell to call for fire rescue. I also informed him of the knife in the truck. I was soon joined by Inv. Henderson, VCSO, and Det. Sanchez, DeLand PD.

Sanchez moved the knife and placed it in the rear of the truck. With their assistance, we took the suspect from the vehicle and began CPR. I administered chest compressions, and Sanchez was given a mask and administered breaths. I was soon relieved by Henderson.

With in a minute, fire rescue and EVAC personnel arrived. I instructed Sanchez to replace the knife on the passenger seat. I then instructed Sgt. Sampsell to sit in our vehicle until the Chief or a commanding officer could arrive.

He did so. Chief Baskoff arrived minutes thereafter.

Narrative by DeLand Police:

A w/m [white male] suspect, who has not been positively identified at this time, was witnessed walking on Stetson Campus, holding a knife to his neck and another knife to his stomach.

The suspect proceeded to steal a Stetson University work truck and left the area. Moments later the suspect exited the stolen truck at Woodland and Beresford and attempted to commit an armed car jacking to several drivers who were stopped at the red light. The suspect beat on the car windows with a meat cleaver in his hand as he attempted to get into the vehicles.

Several of those drivers sped away.

After the unsuccessful attempts, the suspect got back into the stolen Stetson truck and proceeded to the 1400 Block of S. Woodland where he carjacked a gray vehicle at knife point in front of the ABC after blocking the vehicle’s path with the stolen truck.

The suspect backed up intentionally ramming another vehicle and then left South on Woodland.

The suspect temporarily pulled into the Race Trac gas station on South Woodland where he exited the gray vehicle and ran up to another unoccupied vehicle with a knife in his hand. The suspect returned to the gray vehicle and left South on Woodland.

Narcotics detectives then advised that they observed a red vehicle with heavy front end damage driving at a high rate of speed and in a reckless manner, South on Woodland from Orange Camp. It was later discovered that this was a second vehicle that the suspect took at knife point from the 100 Block of East Orange Camp.

The suspect drove the gray car from the ABC to the Regional Plaza and after driving through the parking lot in a reckless manner, he impacted the red car on Orange Camp.

The suspect pulled the victim out of the driver’s seat at knife point and drove off in her car with the victim’s 10 year old son still in the vehicle.

The 10 year old was not injured and he was returned to his mother.

— pat@beacononlinenews.com

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