JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville woman is recovering from severe injuries after investigators say a carjacking suspect caused a fiery crash on 103rd Street near Old Middleburg Road.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the violent chain of events began Sunday evening with a carjacking and ended with a burning wreck that left Amber Williams trapped inside her vehicle.
Only on Action News Jax, Williams shared her story after watching graphic body camera footage from police showing the moments she was rescued.
Video from the scene shows flames engulfing a mangled car as an officer rushes toward the wreckage. Williams was still inside.
In an interview, Williams watched the body camera footage of herself being dragged from the burning vehicle.
Amber Williams, the victim, said:
“Unbelievable, I can’t believe I was still in the car.”
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Williams said she and her 14-year-old sister were driving to her home when the crash happened. She recalled:
“We were at a stoplight, then boom.”
Williams said both she and her sister lost consciousness after the impact. Her sister woke up first and managed to escape, but Williams remained trapped inside.
“So she was trying to get me out of the vehicle, but I was just too heavy,” Williams explained.
Body camera footage shows an officer running between vehicles toward the flames after Williams’ sister alerted him that her sister was still inside. The officer then pulled Williams from the burning car, dragging her away from the fire. Williams said being dragged across the pavement caused additional injuries to her side.
Despite the pain, she said she’s grateful for the officers who saved her life. Williams said:
“They were my angels. I really think God sent them to get me out of that vehicle that day because that car is completely gone.”
Images from the scene show her vehicle completely destroyed and unrecognizable.
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Police said the incident began when a woman was carjacked with her 1-year-old child still in the back seat. Officers later located the stolen vehicle and attempted a traffic stop. Investigators say the suspect then crashed into Williams’ car, sparking the fiery wreck.
Authorities said the 1-year-old was safely removed from the stolen vehicle.
Officers arrested 34-year-old Richard Younger at the scene. He faces multiple felony charges, including carjacking and false imprisonment of a child.
Williams said the suspect has no idea how much the crash has changed her life. She is now without a car and is trying to figure out how to transport her two-week-old newborn.
We also spoke with the 14-year-old’s mother, Valerie Footman, who said her daughter has been blaming herself for what happened.
“It’s just been very frustrating and she felt like, maybe she should not have gone to us as the house, then her sister would not have been in the situation. She felt like she couldn’t help her sister enough to get out of the car. She blames herself, just like her sister blames herself. For, um, her to go through that process in the incident, but basically, as I told her, she was the guardian angel, because she woke up,” Footman said.
Family friend Joe Haynick said watching Williams recover has been heartbreaking, which is why he created a GoFundMe to help. Haynick said:
“This was just heartbreaking, wrenching to see her go through that knowing that she just had her second child and I just wanted to create a GoFundMe to help her get back up on her feet, just to ease the stress a little bit of just building her life back,” Haynick said.
A GoFundMe account has been set up to help Williams with medical expenses and transportation as she continues her recovery: GoFundMe
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