A woman was arrested Thursday in connection with multiple Little Rock carjackings over at least the past month, police reported.
Ryeisha Gaines, 18, is a suspect, along with another woman, 19, and two teen girls, 16 and 17, in the robberies, in which they would ask for rides from women, attack the driver and steal the vehicle.
The group was arrested Thursday outside Motel 6 at 10524 W. Markham St. Officers in unmarked cars had been conducting surveillance in the area when about 11:30 a.m., they saw a man hanging from the top of a moving SUV driven by Gaines, according to a police incident report.
Officers reported that Gaines soon stopped the vehicle and began fighting on the ground with the man, 24-year-old Byron Scott. He later told officers that the group had robbed him of several hundred dollars after a night of drinking and smoking marijuana at the motel, according to the report.
Each of the four was arrested.
Scott was taken to Baptist Health Medical Center with a fractured foot. He told officers that he had jumped onto the SUV, a Cadillac Escalade, over the second floor railing of the motel, the report says.
The Escalade belongs to a North Little Rock man, according to police. It was unclear if that vehicle was stolen, but police have named the teens as suspects in three carjackings.
Most recently, a 65-year-old women had her 2014 Toyota Corolla stolen Aug. 27 when she said she gave three teenage girls a ride from a grocery store on Roosevelt Road. The teens purportedly beat the woman and drove away in her car.
A 72-year-old woman had her car stolen Aug. 24 when she gave two teenage girls a ride from Edwards Food Giant, 1700 S. Main St. The teens punched the woman and pulled her from the vehicle after being driven a few blocks.
On Aug. 23, three of the suspects purportedly carjacked a 29-year-old woman at West 19th and South Pierce streets and then struck a pedestrian with the stolen car a half-mile away. When the suspects fled on foot, a witness took pictures of them with a cellphone.
Police reported recovering the stolen vehicle, a Chevrolet Malibu, following the incident. Further details on the hit-and-run were unavailable.
It was unclear if the other stolen vehicles had been recovered.
Gaines was the only suspect charged in the carjackings late Thursday. Police spokesman Lt. Sidney Allen said the other three were being interviewed by detectives and that more charges were likely in the case.
Allen said an investigation is ongoing.
"They're going to be looking into what other incidents they're able to be identified in," he said.
Gaines was charged with two counts of aggravated robbery, two counts of robbery and three counts of theft of property.
"From the investigation, it appears that she is the one that orchestrated most of the robberies," Allen said.
Gaines was being held in the Pulaski County jail in lieu of $10,000 bond.
Metro on 09/05/2014