Barbara Ward, a 76-year-old African American grandmother from Cleveland, Ohio, was carjacked at gunpoint outside her apartment, leaving her injured and shaken. She is now urging the complex to improve security as police continue their investigation.
Ward had just stepped into her car outside St. Luke’s Manor when two young men ran up to her. They pointed a gun at her and demanded her keys. She tried to fight back, holding on tight, but they overpowered her.
Before they fled, Ward begged them to give back her bag and walker. Instead, they shouted at her to grab the items. Moments later, they backed the stolen car into her, knocking her down and running over her foot. She later went to the hospital for a checkup, and she was later released without serious injuries.
“It was terrifying. I was traumatized behind that because I didn’t believe what had just happened to me,” Ward told Cleveland 19.
The attack added to her growing frustration with safety at the complex. Her car windows had already been smashed twice this year, and many other residents have reported similar break-ins. Several cars in the lot still had missing windows this week.
Ward and her daughter, Aisha, are now calling on management to increase security. They said residents deserve real protection, especially after repeated incidents.
Police later found Ward’s car within two hours and arrested three people found inside, including two young men. Ward said she now feels scared whenever strangers approach her.
“It’s fear. Cause now I have fear in my heart, you know, and I don’t want these teenagers. I don’t want them walking up on me, no kind of way now,” Ward said.
Meanwhile, the building’s management said they plan to add more security patrols in the parking lot soon and will update residents as changes take place.
SOURCE: blacknews.com