MECKLENBURG COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA — Less than 30 minutes and 7 miles separated two carjacking attempts on October 24th. The first was reported around 10:30 p.m. on Ballantyne Country Club Drive. The victim told officers that he was getting into his car after an evening of watching football with friends when two men approached and tried to force him out at gunpoint.
Thinking they were just kids pulling a prank, David Smith fought back. His stepdaughter, Josie Duda, came out of the home causing the two men to order her to stop. She reacted by doing something that she learned in a self-defense class. She threw her purse away from her and ran back into the house screaming, causing the two to flee from Smith and his car.
Less than a half-hour later, police were called to Fox Hedge Road in nearby Matthews. The couple there wasn’t as fortunate, with the two men taking their Porsche Cayenne at gunpoint. The car was spotted by police heading north on I-77 shortly afterwards, who pulled it over. The occupants fled on foot into a wooded area but were apprehended a short time later.
The men were identified as Noah Allen and Cameron Brown, both 19. Charlotte-Mecklenburg officers believe that the same men committed both alleged crimes and located a 9mm pistol and an AR-15 rifle that were used.
Multiple charges were filed against both men, including three counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon, two counts of conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, felony breaking and entering, larceny of a motor vehicle, larceny from a motor vehicle, and resist/delay/obstruct a law enforcement officer.
Additionally, Allen was charged with felony flee to elude and two counts of simple assault, while Brown was charged with one count of simple assault and possession of marijuana.
Assuming that he was being pranked and fighting back against what he initially assumed were kids with toy guns could have easily been a fatal mistake for the first victim, and had it not been for his stepdaughter causing a distraction and then drawing attention, the outcome could have been much worse. The second set of victims complied with the carjacker’s demands, and were uninjured.
These incidents, which occurred in upscale neighborhoods, serve as a stark reminder that violent crimes can happen anywhere at any time.
