A suspect is in custody after a carjacking in Orange County on Friday.
Authorities say 45-year-old James Patrick Thompson, of Durham, was arrested on Friday evening in South Carolina after stealing a vehicle in Hillsborough earlier that morning.
The victim was visiting from Atlanta to attend a friend’s wedding, according to the Sheriff’s Office, and was traveling on I-85 near the I-40 interchange when she saw a vehicle that had been involved in an accident.
According to law enforcement, she then stopped to offer help to Thompson, who threatened her with a broken bottle, took her vehicle, and left the victim stranded on the highway.
Investigators identified Thompson as a suspect and tracked his movements across the state line. With help from South Carolina state troopers, Thompson was apprehended Friday evening, according to Sheriff Charles Blackwood, with the broken bottle he used to threaten the victim still in the car.
Thompson was being held in South Carolina, as of last update, awaiting extradition to Orange County.
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