Police arrested a San Jose man who carjacked a woman in Morgan Hill earlier this week, authorities said.
About 5:26pm Oct. 6, Morgan Hill Police responded to a report of a carjacking in the 17000 block of Monterey Road. The female victim told officers as she walked toward her boyfriend’s Dodge Ram, a man approached her and took her keys, MHPD said in a press release. The man drove away in the vehicle.
Officers used the city’s automated license plate reading system to quickly locate the stolen truck traveling north on Monterey Road near Cochrane Road, police said. Officers tried to stop the vehicle near Monterey Road and Palm Avenue, but the driver sped away.
The stolen vehicle continued north on Monterey Road before driving off the roadway and behind home near the 9000 block, police said. The driver jumped out of the vehicle and ran.
Police said the truck, still in gear, rolled forward and hit a parked vehicle. Officers chased the suspect on foot and arrested him behind a residence.
The suspect was identified as Robert Cordova, 29, of San Jose. Cordova is currently on probation for firearms-related offenses, according to police.
During the arrest, police found a bullet in Cordova’s pants pocket. Officers continued to search the area and found a fanny pack on the roof of a nearby home, authorities said. Inside the fanny pack was a loaded handgun.
Police said home surveillance video confirmed Cordova had thrown the fanny pack onto the roof after exiting the stolen truck.
Cordova was booked at Santa Clara County Jail on suspicion of carjacking, evading police, violating probation and illegal firearm possession.
