TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A man discretely texted family and friends as he was being held at gunpoint Sunday during a carjacking, the St. Petersburg Police Department said.
According to arrest documents, the man’s vehicle was carjacked by two people around 10 p.m. following an accident.
Authorities said 23-year-old Cortiz Flowers, of St. Petersburg, Florida, got into the victim’s two-door vehicle and pointed a gun at his abdomen, demanding he drive to pick up 25-year-old Alisiya Webb, of Pasadena, Florida.
After they picked up Webb, they continued driving as Flowers kept the gun on his lap, authorities said.
According to the documents, Flowers mentioned going to a “mechanics shop” to take care of the vehicle. The victim, who later told police he kept driving out of fear of being shot, said he believed the two intended to kill him and dismantle the vehicle.
As Flowers and Webb talked together, officers said, the victim began texting family members and friends that he was being held at gunpoint.
Flowers, who was wearing an ankle monitor, later got out of the vehicle and fled on foot, police said. Webb ordered the victim to continue driving, telling him to “keep going forward,” police said.
The victim told police he feared Webb was also armed. He added that she kept “fidgeting” in the front seat.
Webb later got out of the vehicle as well and was arrested by St. Petersburg police.
Webb later admitted to being inside the vehicle with the victim and knowing that Flowers had a firearm. She also admitted she threw a backpack containing a firearm from the vehicle, police said.