Carjacking victim hit with fee by police to get car back

Carjacking victim hit with fee by police to get car back

In the early morning hours Tommie Collins of Jackson, Mississippi was with a friend when they became the victim of an armed carjacking. Tommie told Mississippi News Now, “Two young guys, it was five o'clock in the morning. I don't know who they were, but I just know both of them throw guns in my face and on my friend girl, took her wallet…Took my car with everything, both cell phones. Everything I had is in the car."

Right after the crime Tommie called the Jackson Police Department. While the JPD investigation came up with nothing, Tommie was able to locate his stolen 1997 green Honda Accord himself. He said, "I found my car Monday at about 3:45 p.m….It was at the Village Apartments just sitting there parked with, on a flat tire. They left it there. They left bandanas, bullets all kinds of stuff in my car." Again, Tommie called the police to report his find. At the crime scene officers told Tommie the car may have finger prints leading to the suspects. "So that's why they said they had to tow it to the crime lab. But, he told me it wasn't going to be a fee for me to get my car back," Tommie recalled. The Honda was towed to the city’s impound lot and the car’s owner was slapped with a $75 fee to get his car back. "I shouldn't have to pay to get it back. I was carjacked. I'm the victim. I shouldn't have to pay to get my car back," said Tommie. According to Mississippi News Now, the JPD says that $75 is the standard fee all people are required to pay to receive their cars and the money goes toward the towing cost. It’s unknown if Tommie has gotten his car back from the impound lot.

More info: WLBT/WDBD