April 6, 2023 When a suspect tried to steal a parked vehicle after a failed carjacking attempt, he soon discovered it was an unmarked Newark police car with an off-duty officer inside.
By Cliff Pinckard Source cleveland.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
NEWARK, DE— A 22-year-old man was chased down and arrested after he reportedly tried to carjack an unmarked police vehicle with an off-duty police officer at the wheel.
Police believe the suspect, Mark Tannen of Newark, had attempted and failed to carjack another vehicle just minutes earlier. Tannen has been charged with two counts of attempted robbery.
According to a news release, the first carjacking attempt occurred at 8:23 p.m. Tuesday. The victim tells police that a man believed to be Tannen opened the victim’s car door and tried to force him out of the vehicle. The driver was able to fight off the suspect and lock the doors of the car, police say.
Just minutes later, Tannen approached the unmarked police car, which was stopped on a nearby street, police say. Tannen opened the door of the car and ordered the driver, an off-duty officer, out of the vehicle.
When the driver told Tannen he was a police officer, Tannen reportedly tried to run away, but the officer gave chase. Tannen was taken into custody with the help of other police officers, according to the news release.
No weapons were found and there were no reports of injuries, police say.