Washington Co. sheriff: Carjacker posed as driver in distress, ordered man out of truck at gunpoint

WASHINGTON COUNTY -- Officials with the Washington County Sheriff's Office on Saturday, Feb. 29 issued a warning after a good Samaritan was carjacked -- ordered out of his vehicle at gunpoint by a thief who posed as a driver in distress.

It happened between 5:07 p.m. and 5:12 p.m. on I-41 southbound at the State Highway 167/Holy Hill off-ramp.

Sheriff's officials said the carjacker stood behind an older (possibly 1970s), silver, four-door Buick LeSabre in rough condition -- blocking any view of the license plate. He had a gas can and acted as though he was out of gas. The trunk of the vehicle was open.

The carjacker was described as white, standing 6' tall, weighing 200 pounds, with a gray hoodie, blue jeans, dark sunglasses, and black work boots.

The victim, a Michigan man, 57, with ties to Washington County, pulled over to help, and the carjacker approached the passenger side of his truck, opened the door, pointed a handgun at the Michigan man, and ordered him out of his truck -- a silver 2016 Dodge Ram with Wisconsin license plate number LB4966.

As this was occurring, sheriff's officials said the silver Buick LeSabre fled southbound on I-41.

“Criminal predators like this need to be held accountable for their actions," said Washington County Sheriff Martin Schulteis in a news release. "The sheriff’s office will be utilizing all resources available to us. In this case, a firearm was pulled on an innocent victim who was only trying to be a good Samaritan to the very individuals that wronged him. We want to ensure these individuals do not victimize anyone further and that is why we are asking for the public’s help.”

Anyone with information or possible dash camera footage was asked to please contact the Washington County Sheriff’s Office at 262-335-4420.