COLUMBUS — A Columbus woman fought back against a group of thieves who carjacked her vehicle at a gas station, leaving her injured before one of the suspects pointed a gun in her face and fled in her car.
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Johanna Marshall was targeted at an Exxon gas station at East 5th and Cleveland avenues, where suspects body-slammed her and stole her Chevrolet Malibu, our news partners at WBNS reported.
Marshall suffered a broken finger and an injured right arm during the physical struggle.
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The carjacking occurred while Marshall was stopping to pump gas during her morning commute to work.
Marshall said she was removing her bank card from a pump machine during her morning commute when she looked up and saw a group of individuals surrounding her vehicle.
She walked around to the passenger side to confront them.
“I said, ‘I know you are not about to steal my car,’” Marshall said.
As the suspects entered the vehicle, Marshall physically engaged with them inside the car.
“That’s when I jumped in and on him,” Marshall said. “I was hitting him, and the guys tried to sucker punch me. I felt it go on my cheek and that’s when I backed up.”
Despite being struck, Marshall continued fighting with one of the suspects.
“I’m on top of him now inside of the car like fighting with him inside the car cause I’m screaming ‘you are not taking my car,’” Marshall said.
Marshall said she was unaware that one of the individuals was armed during the initial confrontation.
“I was fighting him,” Marshall said. “I didn’t know he had a weapon until he threw me on the ground.”
The suspect picked Marshall up, body-slammed her to the pavement and stomped on her chest, leaving a footprint on her shirt before pointing a firearm at her face.
“My whole left side of my body hit the ground,” Marshall said. “Because he picked me up and body slammed me, and that’s when I let him go because he put the gun in my face.”
Police have released images of two suspects involved in the incident, hoping members of the public will recognize them.
Marshall expressed hope that investigators will identify everyone involved.
“But what I want police to do is catch every last one of them and make them go to jail,” Marshall said.
Police later located and recovered Marshall’s stolen Chevrolet Malibu.
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