In a tragic incident, a grandfather lost his life after being dragged for half a mile by his own car, which was stolen by a carjacker who was subsequently struck by traffic during an escape attempt.
The victim, 67-year-old Donald Russell, succumbed to severe injuries following a violent robbery carried out by 38-year-old Jesse Moats.
The Toledo Police Department reported that Moats seized Russell’s vehicle while he was at a bus stop in Toledo, Ohio.
As Russell remained strapped in by his seat belt, he was dragged behind the car during the February 19th heist.
Paramedics quickly arrived and transported Russell to the hospital in an effort to save his life.
Moats attempted to flee the scene but lost control of the stolen vehicle, resulting in a crash on a nearby highway, according to police reports.
He then attempted to cross traffic on foot and was fatally struck by a passing semi-truck.
Russell succumbed to the injuries he sustained in the horrific accident on Tuesday, according to his daughter.
Donald Russell, 67, pictured above with a family member, died in the hospital on Tuesday after he was brutally injured in a carjacking incident on February 19
Jesse Moats, 38, pictured above in an obituary photo, was identified by the Toledo Police Department as the suspect in the alleged carjacking. He died later that day after fleeing the scene on a highway
Russell’s granddaughter told local news outlet, WTVG, that he was initially in a coma after the carjacking incident
Russell was giving his granddaughter Anniyah Fell and her boyfriend a ride to Toledo Bus Station when he was attacked.
Fell said she was waving her boyfriend off when she suddenly noticed her grandfather was gone.
‘After saying our goodbyes, I walked back to the car, only to find it missing. My grandfather’s shoes, glasses, and phone were scattered on the ground,’ Fell wrote on a GoFundMe.
She added that witnesses told her they saw her grandfather beaten and dragged for a half mile while still restrained by his seatbelt.
‘He was torn from his clothes and left in the road, while the attacker crashed the car and fled,’ she continued.
Fell told local Fox affiliate, WTVG, while he was still alive that her grandfather suffered kidney failure and was in a coma after the accident.
‘He tells me I’m his world, and it breaks my heart to see him like this,’ she told the outlet.
Russell’s daughter, Kelly, shared on Facebook that he died in the hospital on Tuesday night, adding that the fundraising proceeds will now go to saving her father’s house and funeral expenses.
Russell’s family said they are raising money for funeral expenses and to save his house. His granddaughter said she was ‘his world.’ Russell is pictured above in a social media photo shared in June, 2024
Russell’s granddaughter said she was saying goodbye to her boyfriend at the Toledo Bus Station, pictured above, when the carjacking occurred. Russell was waiting in his car near the station
An obituary for Moats said he was a father of three. His mother, Charleen Moats, told the Daily Mail that her son was a ‘loving, kindhearted, giving person’.
She said she spoke to her son at 10.30am and he was on his way back from Colorado, adding that he ‘sounded fine.’
Charleen said she had ‘no idea what made him do what he did’ and ‘this was not my son’.
His mother added that her family had been receiving ‘angry threats.’ She said she was sorry to hear that the Russell family had lost their grandfather.
The investigation into the carjacking and murder is still ongoing. Lieutenant Daniel Gerken has asked anyone with information to call Crimestoppers.
The Daily Mail has also reached out to the Russell family for comment.
