Queens in medically induced coma after being thrown from roof of vehicle while trying to stop car thieves; 2 teenagers charged
NEW YORK -- A Queens man is in critical condition after trying to stop thieves from stealing his vehicle, and the entire incident was caught on video.
At about 9:40 p.m. on Monday, 28-year-old Queens resident Tauree Thompson left his car running and double-parked to do a quick errand just blocks away from his apartment, when suddenly, he witnessed the theft of his own car.
What transpired next is hard to watch. Surveillance video obtained by CBS2 shows Thompson jumping on the roof of his own 2006 Lexus as it heads north on Liberty Avenue. The thieves speed off, eventually trying to swerve to get Thompson off of the vehicle's roof.
As surveillance video shows, the driver lost control, crashing into a fire hydrant and violently throwing Thompson into the sidewalk. The three teenagers in the vehicle then took off on foot; two of them were eventually caught.
Witnesses in the area of the crash say they heard a loud bang before the suspects made a run for it.
"One of them went that way and two of them went this way. When I came out of the house, I saw the gentlemen laying on the floor with all the blood and stuff," witness Natesha Baird said.
Thompson was found by police who performed CPR on the scene before he was taken to Jamaica Hospital where he remains in a medically induced coma with severe head trauma and in critical condition.
Thompson's family and friends declined to speak to us; they are gathered together inside of his Queens home, where they are asking for privacy at this time.
The two 15-year old suspects have been charged as juveniles with grand larceny auto, criminal possession of stolen property and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
Police are still searching for a third suspect.
No names have been released due to their age.