CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man is on the run after stealing a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police cruiser while he was handcuffed, officials said.
Police said Dontray Pharr stole the patrol car and then abandoned it about 10 minutes away.
Officers said Pharr took off with the car during a traffic stop on Sunset Road Tuesday.
(Dontray Pharr)
Chopper 9 Skyzoom was flying overhead when officers found the car.
“They ran up to me and they said, ‘Did you see anyone jump out of this car?’ What happened?’ I said, 'I didn't see anything,'” said Samaura McBride, who lives near the area where the car was found.
Police said Pharr removed his handcuffs and squeezed through a small window inside the patrol car while officers searched his vehicle during the traffic stop in northwest Charlotte.
“It was really kind of scary because they said, 'We apprehended someone and they got away,’” McBride said.
McBride does not understand how the handcuffed suspect escaped.
“Everyone was checking their backyard and looking in garages, locking their doors and everything,” McBride said.
Police said Pharr has several active warrants on charges, including larceny, drug possession, evading arrest and impersonating law enforcement.
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