An 18-year-old with autism was carjacked at a gas station in Charlotte, North Carolina, in a terrifying ordeal that lasted about 40 minutes. According to police, Griffin Hare had stopped for gas when a woman got into his Mini Cooper and drove away with him still inside the vehicle.
Part of what happened was captured on the car's dashboard camera. In the footage, the teenager can be heard telling the woman that he is scared of strangers, while she insists she is the designated driver and that she has to drive for him. At one point, clearly frightened, he says there is a monster, conveying how distressing the situation had become.
Griffin's father said he was on the phone with his son during the ordeal and could hear the panic in his voice, along with a woman yelling in the background, before the call suddenly dropped. He said he could tell that something was not right, describing it as one of the scariest things a parent could imagine and a worst fear coming to life.
The father then began tracking his son's phone and relayed every turn to emergency dispatchers, helping authorities close in on the moving car. The pursuit ended when the vehicle pulled into traffic and officers were able to move in, taking the suspect into custody.
Police identified the woman as 44-year-old Amanda Gillis, who now faces second-degree kidnapping among other charges. Investigators said the carjacking appears to have been random, and that Gillis had not yet publicly responded to the allegations.
The teenager came through the ordeal physically unharmed. His father said he was very proud of his son, calling him brave despite being scared, and expressing relief that he was home and safe after a frightening episode that could have ended very differently.