By Nick Poust
Several Zionsville residents are recovering from a harrowing ordeal in Anderson Sept. 25 that led to a carjacking with one family member still inside the vehicle.
Information provided by the Anderson Police Dept. stated that Robert Rickard III, 34, approached a black 2015 Honda CRV stopped at a red light at Scatterfield Road and 59th Street and told the 52-year-old driver and her 12-year-old son and 81-year-old mother to leave the vehicle.
Rickard then allegedly sat in the seat behind the driver and asked her to drive, but she fled with her son to a nearby Steak ‘N Shake to call police. The driver’s 81-year-old mother remained in the front passenger’s seat during the incident.
With police vehicles in pursuit, the vehicle stopped near 56th Street and Shadeland Avenue in Indianapolis, where officers found the suspect and the unharmed 81-year-old woman. Officers arrested Rickard and charged him with robbery and auto theft.
During a police interview in Anderson, a report states that Rickard told investigators he feared he was being followed by suspicious vehicles and didn’t immediately pull over because he wanted more police presence.
The name of the family has not been released.
