Carjacking foiled when suspects let victim leave with keys

TUCSON, Ariz. (KOLD/Gray News) - An attempted carjacking in Arizona was foiled when the suspects did not get the car keys from the victim, according to court documents.

The Marana Police Department arrested 18-year-old Austyn Spurlock and 21-year-old Arturo Gonzales in connection with the carjacking.

The two men are also accused of shooting at a teenage girl who was with them during the carjacking and leaving her at the crime scene.

According to the interim complaint, Gonzales, Spurlock and the unidentified teenage girl drove to the Tucson Premium Outlets at about 4:30 a.m. Thursday in a black Chevrolet Impala.

They parked near a Ford Mustang, where a man was sleeping.

The interim complaint said Gonzales grabbed a rifle, walked up to the Mustang, tapped the barrel on the window and told the man inside to get out.

Gonzales reportedly hit the victim in the head with the stock of the rifle twice and “ordered him to walk away.” According to the interim complaint, the girl told investigators she saw Gonzales get into the vehicle and heard Spurlock shout, “Get it, get it.”

However, according to court documents, Gonzales and Spurlock could not start the Mustang because the victim had run away, still with the car keys.

Gonzales reportedly told Spurlock to “pull up on” the victim, but the victim had already left the area.

While still in the mall parking lot, the court documents reported Spurlock and Gonzales got into an argument with the girl.

Gonzales reportedly pointed the rifle at the girl, who pushed the barrel down and got out of the vehicle.

The girl told investigators she then threw a can at their vehicle, and heard Spurlock shout, “Kill her.”

According to court documents, the girl said she heard a round pass by her head, turned around and saw Gonzales pointing the rifle at her.

Both the girl and the carjacking victim described the rifle to investigators as black, possibly with a suppressor.

When officers found Spurlock and Gonzales at a home near East 36th Street and South Kino Parkway, they found a black rifle in a closet.

When interviewed by police, Spurlock corroborated the accounts of both the girl and the carjacking victim.

Gonzales and Spurlock were charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, armed robbery, and attempted vehicle theft. Both men were being held on $200,000 bond and have a preliminary hearing set for May 4.