Man carjacked at gunpoint; police track down vehicle through daughter's smartphone
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphia police say a smartphone helped them track down a man who carjacked a vehicle Monday night.
It happened around 11 p.m. along the 6400 block of Elmwood Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia.
Authorities said a 35-year-old man was in Chevy Silverado pickup truck waiting for his wife when a man opened the driver's side door, held a gun to his head and demanded he get out of the car.
The victim ran off and the suspect sped away. That's when the victim realized his daughter's phone was still in the vehicle.
Police followed the car using the phone's GPS tracking system and deployed their helicopter and a number of police cruisers. A car chase then ensued down the streets of Kensington.
The suspect crashed the car on the 400 block of East Tioga Street, but by then, police say a total of four men were inside the truck.
Police said they each ran off in different directions. Officers eventually caught up and arrested them.
"Luckily, they left the gun inside of the stolen vehicle and that was in the center console that was in plain view, so police were able to recover that gun," said Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small. "It is a semi-automatic gun with a fully loaded magazine. So we are really lucky in that respect."
Police said the gunman was positively identified by the victim.
The victim and his family said they are shaken up but were not injured in the incident.
