A group of carjackers are on the run after they beat up a salesman and forced him into the trunk of a vehicle during a test drive, police said.
Jose Martinez, 22, said that he had a bad feeling right away when a man entered the Gillman Dodge in Houston late Monday and asked to test-drive a Dodge Challenger.
"I knew that guy was a little sketch when I first met him," Martinez told KTRK. "He kept on talking weird and I thought, let's just go on a quick test drive and come back."
Midway through the test drive, the suspect drove down a dark road and hit Martinez in the face, according to police. Two other accomplices who had been trailing the Challenger in a silver sedan approached. The suspects forced Martinez into the trunk of the vehicle, police said.
Luckily for Martinez, his kidnappers didn't take his cell phone. He quickly called the police, texted his boss and enabled location tracking on his device.
Martinez's troubles weren't over, though. He says he managed to untie himself and attempted to escape by unlatching the emergency lock from inside the trunk.
Martinez then tried to run away, he said, but the suspects caught up. One of them pulled out a gun, Martinez told the Houston Chronicle:
"I just started whaling on him as best I could," he said. The attacker dropped the gun. Martinez grabbed it and fired, hitting his assailant in the neck. He tried to fire again, but "there was only one fricking bullet," he said. "I was mad about it."
Police said that two suspects, including the one who was shot, drove off in the silver sedan, while another left in the Challenger. Authorities tracked down the stolen vehicle, but could not catch the suspects.
Martinez sustained cuts, bruises and a broken nose. He said that he would be back to work once he recovered, according to Click2Houston.
Houston police continue to search for the suspects.