A St. Augustine Firestone employee was trapped by her own arm in the driver's-side window of her Chevrolet Suburban early Oct. 10 as a man she'd found sleeping outside the shop allegedly tried to drive off in her vehicle. Jesus Francisco Contreras Suarez, a 30-year-old man from South Florida, was arrested at the scene and now faces one felony count of carjacking without a firearm or weapon.
According to News4JAX, the incident began around 6:46 a.m. at the Firestone on San Marco Avenue, where the woman worked and had arrived for her shift. She told police she first saw a man sleeping in a chair outside the business before heading inside. Minutes later, she heard her Suburban start.
She ran back outside to find Contreras Suarez already in the driver's seat, the black SUV in reverse and moving across the parking lot, per the same account. When she reached through the partly open driver's-side window to unlock the door, he allegedly rolled the window up with her arm still inside, trapping it. Officers later documented a visible bruise on her left interior bicep, though the woman reported no damage to the SUV itself, according to sjcitizen.com.
Runners Hear Screaming and Step In
A passing run group heard the woman screaming at the man to get out of her vehicle and rushed to help. One witness called 911 while another recorded part of the confrontation on a cellphone, footage that was later posted to TikTok. A Firestone manager also confronted Contreras Suarez, telling him to stop because police were on the way, the report notes.
Contreras Suarez eventually stopped the vehicle and, per the arrest report, sat in a chair outside the business until officers arrived. He told officers he did not remember how he ended up at the Firestone and asked to speak with a lawyer, at which point questioning ceased. Police reported signs of impairment but determined there was insufficient probable cause for a DUI charge.
Suspect Held Without Bond
Contreras Suarez was taken to the St. Johns County Jail, where he is being held without bond. News4JAX reached out to Firestone for comment but had not received a response at the time of publication.
The case is the latest in a string of attempted-carjacking reports around St. Augustine. On Christmas Eve, a 22-year-old man was arrested after allegedly trying to pull a woman from the driver's seat of a white Toyota outside UF Health Flagler Hospital, striking her before entering the passenger side when she resisted, according to sjcitizen.com. That victim escaped with her keys, though one bystander was reportedly bitten on the forearm and two hospital staff members were allegedly struck while trying to help.
In a separate incident, St. Augustine police arrested Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Lt. John Lopez in connection with an attempted carjacking in a parking lot off St. George Street, according to Action News Jax. The 24-year-old victim said Lopez grabbed her while she was in her car and threw her to the ground, causing bruises, before men nearby pulled him off and restrained him until officers arrived.
