Multiple armed carjackings involving ride-hailing service drivers lead to arrest of Baltimore man
A man has been arrested and charged in connection with multiple carjackings last month that involved ride-hailing service drivers in Baltimore.
Twenty-three-year-old Caron Davis is accused of committing three armed carjackings in different neighborhoods, the Baltimore Police Department (BPD) said in a statement posted to X. The incidents occurred in the 1500 block of Montpelier Street, the 2600 block of Tyler Street and the 200 block of Waldorf Avenue.
Davis -- who is known to police due to several prior arrests -- was taken into custody Oct. 8 as part of a sweep conducted by the city's Warrant Apprehension Task Force (WATF).
Davis has been charged with three counts of armed carjacking and multiple firearm violations. He is also facing theft and assault charges.
The first carjacking
Charging documents obtained by CBS News Baltimore state that on Sept. 19, an employee for Baltimore Sedan Services called police and said that he had been carjacked. Police met the victim, who explained that he was sent to the 1500 block of Montpelier Street to pick up a rider.
Once at the location, the driver told police that a man entered his vehicle and immediately held him at gunpoint. The man told the driver "not to touch anything and get out," according to the charging documents. The suspect then climbed into the front seat and drove off.
The victim told police he didn't get a good look at the suspect, but did see that he was a Black male, young, wearing dark clothing and carrying a light-colored bag.
Police contacted the car service and received the phone number and address of the caller who requested the ride. Police discovered that the suspect used a cellular service that could only be used when connected to Wi-Fi.
Investigators used data from Apple, Comcast
Police then issued a warrant to the cellular service, hoping to identify the user of the cellphone. Investigators later received the username and email address of the account holder, the charging documents said.
Police also served a search warrant to iPhone maker Apple Inc. for the account email address, as well as to Comcast Cable Communications for the IP addresses associated with the phone.
Police said they were able to obtain the suspect's address, in the 1500 block of Montpelier Street, but were unable to take the person into custody at that time.
The next carjackings
While that investigation was unfolding, there were two more reports of rideshare drivers being carjacked at gunpoint. A report on Sept. 20 came from the 2800 block of Waldorf Avenue, while another came on Sept. 22 from the 2600 block of Tyler Avenue. That address is one block away from the Montpelier incident, Baltimore police investigators said.
The same company, Baltimore Sedan Services, was contacted for a ride in both incidents. When the drivers arrived, they were held at gunpoint until the suspect drove off in their vehicles.
How police caught their suspect
A 911 call for a domestic dispute ended up leading to Caron Davis's arrest in the carjackings. On Oct. 2 a woman called police to the 1500 block of Montpelier Street. That caller was later identified as Davis's girlfriend.
During their investigation, police noticed that Davis matched the description of their carjacking suspect. They also observed him using an iPhone to provide someone the same address police had visited for one of the armed carjackings.
Police learned that Davis was on probation at the time and the email address he used to register his phone was the same email received from the cellular texting service, Apple Inc. and Comcast Cable Communications during their carjacking investigation.