Gina DeJesus is OK after being carjacked at gunpoint, police say.
DeJesus, a kidnapping survivor who recently celebrated the eighth anniversary of her escape to freedom with Amanda Berry and Michelle Knight (now Lily Rose Lee), reportedly stopped on the side of the road near West 127th Street and Triskett Road. That’s when a silver sedan cut her off and wouldn’t allow her to leave. It was around 1:50 a.m. on Thursday (May 13), WKYC reports.
DeJesus apparently told responding officers that one of two men to exit the sedan pointed a gun at her and told her to get out of the car. DeJesus got out, handed over her keys and walked away.
19 News reports that the thieves also took DeJesus’ purse and credit cards.
DeJesus and her cousin co-founded Cleveland Missing (the Cleveland Family Center for Missing Children and Adults), a nonprofit organization that that aims to help families of missing persons.
The organization released a statement about the carjacking to 19 News:
“As the public is becoming aware, our beloved co-founder Gina DeJesus was the victim of a crime of violence overnight where she was carjacked in the city of Cleveland. We are happy to report that Gina is unharmed and in good spirits despite the events that took place.”
DeJesus was 14 years old when Ariel Castro kidnapped her, on April 2, 2004. She, Berry and Lee escaped the Seymour Avenue house nearly a decade later, on May 6, 2013.
On the eight-year anniversary last week, Cleveland Missing shared on Facebook that DeJesus deems May 6 her “‘other’ birthday.”
Anyone with information about the recent carjacking should contact police at 216-621-1234.
Photo: Getty Images