Local

Jacksonville firefighter's truck recovered after being stolen while he assisted crash victims

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department employee who had his truck stolen Friday morning on Myrtle Avenue as he was assisting the victims of a traffic crash said the truck has been recovered.

The JFRD employee, Mitchell Johnson, observed two suspects get into his Ford F250, a Jacksonville Sheriff's Office report said.

“I was trying to get one of the patients out of the vehicle or to the door I happened to hear my truck. It’s a diesel. I heard the engine start to rev up,” Johnson said.

After the suspects got into the truck, which had its emergency flashers on, the suspect behind the wheel revved the engine and backed away, according to the report. They hit a fence and then put the truck in drive.

“He was going to run me over,” said Johnson.

Johnson's friend, Travis Cauley, reached out to Action News Jax and assisted in the social media efforts to find the truck. Cauley posted a video to his Facebook page in which Johnson thanked everyone for their help in finding the truck.

In the video, Johnson said JSO told him that one suspect was in custody.