A London man is facing multiple charges following a violent carjacking in Brantford that saw the victim ripped from a vehicle and assaulted.
The Brantford Police Service said on Saturday at around 11:20 p.m., officers received a call from a resident who was concerned for the well-being of her friend who had consumed a large quantity of cannabis edibles and had become heavily intoxicated.
At around the same time, the owner of a vehicle was injured in an assault when forced from a car in the area of Salisbury Ave. The owner was also dragged a distance by the carjacker as he drove away with the vehicle.
Officers who were responding to the call about the intoxicated man spotted the stolen vehicle travelling east on Veteran’s Memorial Parkway in an extremely dangerous and erratic manner. The stolen vehicle drove over several residential lawns and crossed the median into oncoming traffic multiple times, forcing other vehicles to swerve to avoid being hit.
When the stolen vehicle drove into a parking lot in the area of Veteran’s Memorial Parkway, Colborne Street West and Shellards Lane, officers blocked the exits to prevent the driver from escaping. The vehicle was intentionally driven into a marked police cruiser in an attempt to escape, causing significant damage to both vehicles. The driver attempted to resist arrest but he was eventually taken into custody just after midnight.
The victim of the carjacking was taken to hospital and treated for serious but non-life threatening injuries.
Kristopher Charles Mitchell, 41, of London is now charged with theft of a motor vehicle, assault causing bodily harm, dangerous operation of a vehicle causing bodily harm, dangerous operation of a vehicle, impaired driving causing bodily harm, impaired driving by drug, two counts of flight from police, failure to stop following a collision, robbery, resisting arrest, and possession of stolen property.
