UNION COUNTY, N.C. — Union County deputies are looking for four people they say were involved in an elaborate shoplifting scheme in Indian Trail Friday night.
Authorities said that around 11:45 p.m., a shoplifting suspect at the Walmart got into a BMW sedan that was left running and occupied by two women.
One of those women managed to get out of the car and police said the suspected carjacker told the other to get out as well, but as she tried to find her glasses, the man physically assaulted her, deputies said.
He then drove a short distance where he stopped to load stolen Walmart merchandise into the car. That’s when the second woman was able to escape, officials said.
Investigators have determined that the kidnapping suspect was one of at least four people involved in stealing thousands of dollars in merchandise from the store earlier in the evening.
The four suspects allegedly worked as a group to steal several shopping carts full of merchandise, deputies told Channel 9. Once the carts were loaded, other suspects would enter the store and push the merchandise outside and load it into waiting vehicles.
Before they left the store property, one of them decided to steal the BMW, according to deputies.
On Saturday morning, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police notified Union County deputies that the stolen BMW was involved in a hit-and-run crash near Interstate 85 and Freedom Drive.
The suspect ran away from the car before police arrived.
Investigators said that the suspects are African-American and at least two of them are men. The suspect involved in the carjacking was described as an African-American male, approximately 6 feet 2 inches tall, dressed in dark or black clothing, wearing a ball cap. He had long dreads with red woven highlights.
Authorities are still working to gather photos and determine if other surveillance footage exists.
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