Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office deputies are searching for a suspect in connection with a series of carjackings that started in Orange County, ended in Hillsborough and at one point involved shots being fired at one of the carjacking victims.
- Jorge Ballin chased after suspect after his truck was stolen
- Suspect fired at Ballin when he tried to confront thief
- Suspect also stole a vehicle in Polk County
Deputies said suspect Lorenzo Majar Jones started his spree by stealing a 2009 Cadillac in Ornage County and then driving to Plant City.
He reportedly then abandoned the Cadillac on I-4 just west of Thonotosassa Road, and stole a green Ford F150 that was parked in front of a home on Haggery Road.
Investigators said the owner of the Ford F150 spotted his truck being stolen and followed the suspect in another truck. The owner, Jorge Ballin of Plant City, caught up to the suspect at a Marathon gas station on Thonotosassa Road and attempted to confront him.
At that point deputies said Jones shot three rounds from a weapon at Ballin's vehicle, then drove away in the stolen truck.
"I was really lucky."
Ballin told us he was at a job site when he saw someone stealing his truck, and made a decision he told us later was probably a rash one.
"I got really mad when I saw the guy taking my truck, to be honest with you," Ballin told us. "And I said, 'Well, I've got a bigger truck, maybe I can bump it to the side,' or I don't know. But my first thought was 'follow him.'"
He caught up with his stolen truck about a half mile away at the gas station, and when he pulled up alongside to confront the suspect, that's when he saw the gun come out.
"I opened up my eyes as big as I could and I looked at him, and then I ducked down," Ballin explained. "And I stepped on the gas and backed up."
Ballin came away from the encounter uninjured, as the bullets went into the front end of the truck he was driving. Ballin considers himself extremely fortunate that he wasn't hurt and could come home to his family.
"I was lucky," Ballin said. "I got to hug [my family]. I got to hug them like I've never done it before."