The Broward Sheriff's Office is looking for a carjacker who targeted an elderly man on his way to lunch on Easter Sunday in Oakland Park.
Robert Alan Rinehart, 76, said it all started just after 1 p.m. when he noticed a man walking toward him outside the Denny’s restaurant on Commercial Blvd.
Rinehart had just parked his black 4-door 2011 Hyundai Genesis and still had the car keys in his hand when the man asked him, "How much does it cost to eat here?”
In a matter of seconds Rinehart would be without his keys and chasing down a man racing to get his car. "It was bright sunny day; you certainly aren't expecting something like that," Rinehart said.
The man hit him in the arm, making him drop his car keys. "He gave a good chop... I had my keys in my left hand and he whacked my left hand and I guess it opened up and he grabbed them and he was off running."
Rinehart chased the man but was not able to stop him.
As the carjacker drove off, he clipped Rinehart in the lower torso with the car. "I'm sure if I hadn't gotten to the side fast enough I'd be under the wheel."
Witnesses saw the carjacker flee northbound on Dixie Highway. One woman, who did not want to be identified, said she wanted to go after the guy.
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"I felt really terribly bad for the gentleman, he was an older man, it was Easter Sunday, a day of Jesus and something unfortunate like that happening, you don't even think," she said.
Robbery detectives are looking for a male in his early twenties with a slim build and a dark complexion.
He had medium-length black hair and wore a white shirt with a Miami Heat logo on the front.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers of Broward County at (954) 493-TIPS (8477).
A reward of up to $3,000 is available for information leading to an arrest.
