In response to a recent series of armed carjackings along I-5, the Washington State Patrol (WSP) announced this week that they will increase their presence on the freeway, and urged drivers to be vigilant and aware of this dangerous criminal activity.

The most recent incident occurred on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, when a driver was carjacked near the South 320th exit in Federal Way. According to WSP, the victim’s vehicle was bumped from behind by a white SUV. Both vehicles pulled to the shoulder, at which point three suspects wearing ski masks exited the SUV, pointed firearms at the victim, and stole their wallet, phone, and vehicle. The suspects, described as young Black males, fled the scene after throwing the victim’s belongings into nearby bushes.

Two additional carjackings occurred early on Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, under similar circumstances:

• Shortly after midnight, a white SUV bumped a vehicle near Fife. After pulling over to the shoulder, 6-7 Black males wearing ski masks approached the victim. The victim was punched, and his car was stolen. The victim was able to track the stolen vehicle on his phone after the suspects tossed the phone from the vehicle. The vehicle was then located in Federal Way and pursued to Martin Luther King Blvd. One male suspect was arrested, and two females were released to family members.
• Shortly after 1 a.m., another car was bumped by a white SUV. Much like before, the victims were robbed at gunpoint. Later, one of the victim’s credit cards was attempted to be used at a McDonalds on South 320th. The manager of the restaurant was able to provide a vehicle description that matched one of the earlier stolen vehicles.

Troopers said that carjackings in our area are extremely rare but they do sometimes occur. While the vast majority of minor collisions are simple fender-benders caused by an inattentive driver, the traveling public needs to be aware and wary of any similar scenario where they are bumped by another vehicle and then multiple or masked people emerge from the causing vehicle.

“We recommend that anyone involved in a minor collision involving a white SUV, immediately report it to 911,” WSP said. “Move out of traffic flow to a safe location but do not pin yourself in. Given recent events, be vigilant on who and how many persons get out from the causing vehicle. If the situation seems at all suspicious, be prepared to quickly leave the area and not engage with individuals from the causing vehicle.”

WSP says that you should drive to a well-lit and safe public place like a local police station. If you find yourself in this scenario, call 911 with updates as you are safely able to do so.

“While a white SUV is linked to each of the three situations outlined above, this type of crime could be perpetrated by any vehicle. Any similarly suspicious behavior with any vehicle or number or description of suspicious parties should be treated with great caution. If the situation turns out to be a common and innocent minor collision, law enforcement will be able to sort things out quickly and both parties will be on their way after the normal exchange of information.”

The Washington State Patrol and our partners in local law enforcement are committed to finding the perpetrators of this serious and dangerous criminal behavior and bringing them to justice.

“The public’s awareness, reasoned caution, and fast information sharing will help us in this important work.”

WSP Contact Information:

Related

SPANISH FORK — A Utah County Sheriff’s deputy has found himself in the fight of his life with something no amount of training could have helped him to prepare.

32-year-old Deputy Hayden Liddiard was recently diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

“It’s a life expectancy of two-and-a-half to five years,” Liddiard acknowledged in an interview Tuesday with KSL TV. “It was shocking, to say the least.”

Liddiard said he first noticed symptoms a couple years back that included tremors in his hands and difficulty doing basic processes like helping his daughter open a wrapper for a fruit snack.

He then started to observe difficulty continually reloading magazines during weapons training.

“That’s kind of what led us to the doctor,” Liddiard said. “The doctor was like, ‘yeah, something’s not adding up.’”

Liddiard said he saw an additional nerve specialist and neurologist and underwent numerous tests which ultimately led to the diagnosis.

“From the research I’ve done, it’s normally 50s, 60s, 70s—that’s when you see that onset,” Liddiard said. “Being 32, it’s something really shocking.”

The news also caught Liddiard’s friends and coworkers at the sheriff’s office by surprise.

“This is not the kind of threat that you can see coming,” Liddiard’s supervisor, Sgt. Austin Edwards, said.

Edwards said Liddiard has been an asset to the department and it would continue to support him while putting him to work, as long as he feels able to work.

“We love Hayden,” Edwards said. “We just want to be there for him and his family as much as they are willing to let us and need us.”

A Help A Hero fundraising account* has been set up to support Liddiard and his wife and daughters.

Liddiard said the ordeal has reframed the way he chooses to spend his time.

“You’re given the news that, hey, you have X amount of time and you realize what your priorities are,” Liddiard said. “Every opportunity I get to be with my girls—whether it’s being able to take them to school instead of having them take the bus, taking them out for ice cream, whatever it may be—we’re taking advantage of it at this point.”

Like many days on the job in law enforcement, Liddiard doesn’t know where the road will take him.

“Time is one thing you don’t get back,” Liddiard said. “You’ve got to make the best of what we have, while we have it.”

*KSL TV does not assure that the money deposited to the account will be applied for the benefit of the persons named as beneficiaries. If you are considering a deposit to the account, you should consult your own advisors and otherwise proceed at your own risk.

When it comes to hanging out with his deer buddies and snacking on his favorite treat — crabapples fresh off the trees — a mule deer buck that lives in Rock Springs isn’t about the let anything stop him.

Not even terrible injuries that have left him limping along on three hooves with antlers that are a tangled mess.

What Do We Call Him?

Folks weren’t sure what to call the buck that has limped his way around the southwest Wyoming town for a couple of years and become a local fixture.

So, Rock Springs resident Daxton Staley posted a poll on social media calling on other locals to help him decide on a name.

Popular options included Eliot after the goofy, one-antlered deer from the animated children’s movie “Open Season.”

Many favored “Lt. Dan” after the character in the hugely popular cinematic tribute to Americana, “Forrest Gump.”

In that movie, Lt. Dan is initially angry and cynical after losing his legs during the Vietnam War, but eventually finds redemption and happiness.

However, one fitting name won out: Steve the Survivor.

Staley said he came up with that name.

“I was sitting on the couch, and I saw him through the living room window, and I thought ‘Steve’ seemed to fit him. He’s Steve the Survivor,” he said.

How Did He Get That Way?

Quite a few mule deer call Rock Springs home. They frequently move between tasty lawns in quiet neighborhoods and resting spots in the vast, arid lands surrounding the city.

Among the deer, Steve has been popular for a while, Staley told Cowboy State Daily.

Nobody seems to know for sure how Steve got to be the way that he is. But as the story goes, he was more-or-less a normal buck before being struck by a vehicle about two years ago, Staley said.

The accident left the young buck horribly wounded and deformed, but he slowly recovered enough to keep living his best life.

At first, one of Steve’s rear hooves was “hanging on by just some fur and maybe a tendon,” Staley said. “But then it fell completely off.”

Not to be so easily stopped, Steve continued to limp along on the stump, which eventually calloused over, Staley said.

According to wildlife biologists, head injuries can cause unusual antler growth in deer. That could probably account for the wild and wacky way that Steve’s antlers come in every year.

Bucks start growing antlers in the spring. At first, the antlers are covered with a nutrient-rich membrane called velvet. Once that dries up and falls off, usually in late summer or early fall, the antlers are revealed in their full glory.

The antlers themselves fall off, usually around February, and the process starts all over again with the antlers growing in bigger with each passing year.

A Few Injured Deer Around Town

Steve isn’t the only deer with old injuries in Rock Springs, Animal Control Officer Lydia Gomez told Cowboy State Daily.

“There are a few bucks that we have been called about,” Gomez said. “Game and Fish is also aware of the deer. They have old injuries, and are able to get around and eat, (so) Game and Fish leaves them alone.”

He’s Not Pathetic, He’s Tough

Some people think Steve the Survivor is pathetic. But Staley doesn’t think that’s the right way to regard the tenacious buck.

“A lot of people have seen him, and some people were talking about how sad it is,” he said.

Steve doesn’t seem to be sad at all, Staley said.

“He’s been munching on the neighbor’s crabapples” and appears to have plenty of energy, he said.

Staley said when he watches Steve, he doesn’t feel pity. He feels inspired.

“He’s a symbol of perseverance,” Staley said. “He’s definitely a cool deer, and he’s tough.”

Contact Mark Heinz at mark@cowboystatedaily.com

Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.