LONGMONT, Colo. – A Longmont man was run over after trying to stop a car thief from stealing his vehicle, the Longmont Police Department said Sunday afternoon.
The man, who was only identified as being 26 years of age, was drying his blue 2019 Toyota Tacoma pickup at a car wash with his wife near Missouri and Main Street around 3:45 p.m. Sunday. A suspect rode nearby on a bike and started to look inside the pickup and talk with the couple, according to police documents. He then started to get inside the pickup and the couple tried to stop him.
While trying to stop the thief, police said, the Longmont resident was run over by the suspect.
About 30 minutes later, a Broomfield Police officer who was aware that a car theft suspect was being sought, saw the truck driving south on I-25 near Highway 7.
Police said the suspect eluded authorities as they attempted to catch him.
Several agencies, including the Colorado State Patrol and the Adams County Sheriff’s Office, helped stop the man by using the PIT maneuver near I-25 and 56th Avenue, a spokesperson with the police department said in a news release.
The suspect, identified as 29-year-old Joshua Gary Gordon, was then taken into the Boulder County Jail after being transported to a hospital for non-serious injuries. Police found an opened bottle of schnapps in the pickup, according to police documents, and the officer smelled alcohol. The suspect also had an unopened bottle of vodka.
The man who was run over sustained serious injuries in the crash, including fractures as well as some internal injuries, but his prognosis for a complete recovery is good, police said.
Gordon is facing charges of aggravated motor vehicle theft, vehicular assault while under the influence, DUI, robbery and violation of a protection order.