May 27, 2008 10:08 pm US/Central
Sailors Charged With Carjacking, Torching Cab
WAUKEGAN, Ill. (CBS) ―
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Navy sailors Aaron Couch, 21, of Monroe, La., (left) and Terry Gappa, 20, of Plymouth, Mass., (right) allegedly car-jacked a cab and drove it around the Gurnee area before setting it on fire on Memorial Day.
CBS
Two local sailors have been arrested for car-jacking a cab and then setting it on fire.
CBS 2's Dana Kozlov reports that the sailors now face three felony charges each, accused of committing the crimes on the very day the nation pays its respects to those who died serving the country.
The cab driver was shaken up but okay. Authorities said his ordeal started outside Chicago's Union Station and ended with him jumping out of his moving taxi fearing for his life.
Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran said Aaron Couch and Terry Gappa decided to commemorate Memorial Day in an unfortunate way. The two sailors from the Great Lakes Naval Station in North Chicago are charged with car-jacking this cab with its driver, then setting it on fire before officers found them hiding in a ditch.
Curran said the sailors hailed the taxi near Union Station Monday night and asked the Chicago Carriage cab driver to take them to the naval station. On the way, Curran said they decided they wanted to buy beer at a Jewel grocery store in Gurnee. That's when the sailors allegedly commandeered the cab.
"In doing so, as he's driving in that direction, they then make threats upon his life. He doesn't know if they have a gun, he doesn't know what type of weapon they have, so he turns the car over," Curran said.
The driver eventually escaped the moving car and called for help. Curran said officers were responding to a car on fire north of Wadsworth when they found Couch and Gappa in a ditch.
"We're dealing with this Memorial Day weekend when we honor our soldiers, we honor our fallen soldiers, what they've given to this country. For these two guys to blemish the uniform of the United States Navy, I think it's really sad."
The sailors were released Tuesday afternoon on a recognizance bond. A spokesman for the naval base said superiors were still reviewing details of this case, but for now, the sailors are restricted to the base.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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