JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Northside man who was carjacked at gunpoint in a drive-thru restaurant on Saturday night said he thought it was a random victim of an extremely desperate gunman. Less than 48 hours later the victim learns his car was used in the fatal robbery of a Northside gas station.
Toye Whitaker was with his girlfriend and their two children -- a 5-year-old son and 5-month-old baby -- were waiting at the take-out widow of the Hook Fish and Chicken Seafood Restaurant on Moncrief Road about 10:50 p.m. when a man with a gun approached and ordered everyone out of the car.
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The crime was captured on surveillance video (images below).
"He had the gun gripped down like he had been to the gun range before (he) pointed (it) at my face and then down at my chest," Whitaker said.
Whitaker believes the man pointing a gun at him and his family looked capable of killing them if they didn't follow his directions.
"I thought he was going to kill me because he had straight evil in his face," Whitaker said. "He didn't have on a mask or anything."
Whitaker says his girlfriend yelled at him to just give the gunman the car and immediately went to the backseat to get the kids out of their car seats.
In the 30 seconds it took to get the children out, Whitaker considered grabbing the gun from the carjacker, but is glad he didn't.
News4Jax's crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said Whitaker was smart not to try.
"A lot of times they want to take that car and commit another crime like a drive-by shooting or something else," Smith said.
Whitaker said Jacksonville Sheriff's Office detectives told him the suspect may have committed other crimes in the same area that night, either before or after the carjacking.
Whitaker's 2002 silver Toyota Avalon was recovered, and late Monday afternoon police said it was the vehicle seen fleeing from Gate Station on Busch Drive where a clerk was shot during an armed robbery Sunday night.
Smith said the carjacking may have left valuable physical evidence in the vehicle.
"The most useful evidence that would be left behind is the fingerprints (on the) steering wheel or vehicle," Smith said.
Police said the suspect in the carjacking appeared to be a black male, late 20s to early 30s, approximately 5 feet 8 to 5 feet 10 inches, weighing 150-175 pounds, wearing a white, long-sleeve shirt, blue jeans and white shoes.
Police emphasize that they can't be sure the gunman who took the car was the same person who committed the fatal robbery, he's obviously a person of interest.
Anyone who has any information about this carjacking or the Gate robbery is asked to contact the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500. To remain anonymous and receive a possible reward up to $3,000 contact Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.