DoorDash driver and his dog injured during armed carjacking in Oakland
OAKLAND -- A DoorDash driver said he and his dog survived a violent attack earlier in April at a fast food drive through in Oakland.
Ahmed Elsharkawy was picking up a DoorDash order in the Jack in the Box drive-thru line on International Boulevard and 24th Avenue in Oakland just before midnight April 18 when thieves fired into his car.
"That's a bullet; bullet from the one they shoot it in my car. When I cleaned my car, I find it," Elsharkawy explained.
Bullets flew into the back of his car and back windshield that night before three armed robbers demanded his car through his half-open window, he said.
He said he was pistol-whipped multiple times.
"They hit me in the back of my head with 4 hits, 3 hits from them," he said of his injuries that sent him to the hospital.
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His German Shepherd-Husky mix Bella was in the back seat during the takeover. She was injured in the leg, where she previously had surgery last year.
"They start hitting my dog. I just heard screaming, or yelping from my dog in the moment, and he start hitting me back in my head. And I open the door. I got my dog out and they just take off," he said.
Elsharkawy called 911. He said it took officers 25 minutes to meet him.
"It was a lot of people too around me. People were in the parking lot, people were in the drive-through, but in a second, I find myself alone in the whole Jack in the Box," he added.
He is struggling with hearing loss from his head injury that he said doctors fear will be permanent.
His car was eventually found in undriveable condition, stripped of its catalytic converter, dented and dumped. Oakland Police confirmed to KPIX it was used in other criminal activity after it was stolen.
"It's kids, like maybe 16, 17, 18," Elsharkawy said of the suspects. "They're very comfortable. I was shocked."
Elsharkawy is now facing mounting bills and expenses, including $1,250 dollars in impound lot and tow fees. He said police waived about $400 in fees connected to their investigation.
Oakland police later clarified that Elsharkawy's vehicle was released for him to pick up on a Friday, but he was still in the hospital and unable to get the vehicle until the following Monday as he was still in the hospital. He incurred additional fees due to the delay "in picking up the release form from Records and recovering the car," police said.
Elsharkawy also couldn't afford to get the car towed to his home. He's also looking at thousands of dollars in car repairs and medical bills for himself and Bella.
"I feel I'm stuck, I'm very stuck. Mentally I'm not okay, emotionally I'm not okay," he said.
Driving for DoorDash was his only source of income, after Elsharkawy lost his job as a server in 2020 when the pandemic began. He started a GoFundMe to help himself get back on his feet.
"I work hard for myself and for my family, my daughter. I would say it's the American dream but...the system is not in my favor, I would say," he said.
Elsharkawy said he reached out to DoorDash for support but has not received any new updates on his case beyond initial contact.
KPIX reached out to DoorDash Saturday and a representative said they will respond with more details when they become available.
