Delaware County Carjacking Ends In Crash After Brief Police Chase
By Chelsea Karnash
COLLINGDALE, Pa. (CBS) -- A carjacking that began in Collingdale, Delaware County turned into a brief chase down I-95 south and ended in a crash in Chester City.
Shortly before midnight on July 17th, the Collingdale Police Department was dispatched to 23 Jackson Avenue for reports of a robbery. Upon the arrival, an officer located the victim lying in the grass at the corner of Jackson Ave and Pusey Ave with his face covered in blood and a large gash on the left side of his head that was bleeding profusely.
The victim was able to tell the officer that he had been robbed for his car, a white Toyota Corolla with an Ohio license plate, and his delivery money. The victim also said that he had been making a delivery of a cheesesteak to a residence on Jackson Street, and that when he arrived, he observed three black males sitting on the front porch. The three males then allegedly attacked the victim, hit him in the head and face, and stole his money. One male was heard saying he had a gun.
The victim was transported to Crozier Hospital.
During the time that the officer was speaking to the victim, another officer heard of a white Toyota Corolla bearing Ohio tags last seen on Pusey Avenue towards Cherry Street. He began to search the area for the vehicle on Chester Pike, which intersects with both Pusey Avenue and Cherry Street. While conducting the search, the officer heard on the fireboard of a car that matched the description of the one he was looking for driving recklessly on Sharon Avenue in Sharon Hill. He notified Darby Police, who confirmed that a white Toyota bearing Ohio registration was in the left turn lane on Calcon Hook Road waiting to turn left onto Hook Road.
The Darby officer saw two unmarked police cars located near the intersection and asked them to activate their lights and attempt to pull over the vehicle. When the cars put on their lights, the white Toyota sped up and drove directly in front of a Darby police car, ripping off the police car's front bumper and heading at a high rate of speed on Hook Road towards 84th St and Lindbergh Avenue.
Police pursued the vehicle all the way onto I-95 South and into the Chester City, where it exited onto Chestnut Street and made a left onto 12th Street, where several Chester cop cars attempted to stop it. The white Toyota drove straight at the Chester officer's cars, just missing them, before jumping onto the sidewalk, barreling through a fence and heading down an embankment towards I-95 North, where it came to rest against the guardrail.
The suspects in the stolen car attempted to flee the vehicle on foot, and the responding officers notified other members of the police, who positioned themselves along 12th Street and were able to located one suspect, Charles Meriweather, who was hiding in the brush. Meriweather was identified as the driver of the car.
Meriweather, 18, of Collingdale, was placed under arrest. He is charged with Robbery, Criminal Attempt Homicide, Reckless Endangering another Person, Risking Catastrophe, Resisting Arrest, Aggravated and Simple Assault, Robbery of a Motor Vehicle, Theft, Firearms not to be Carried w/o License, and several motor vehicle violations.
Police are still searching for the other two men.
