NOVATO — A construction worker is in jail following a carjacking spree in Marin and Sonoma counties. Aaron M. McKendrick, 35 of Martinez, was arrested following a manhunt conducted by multiple law enforcement agencies.
Three vehicles were stolen on August 22. First a vehicle was stolen during a robbery in the Meeker Camp area of Sonoma County. A second carjacking followed in Petaluma. The third carjacking happened in Novato.
This third carjacking occurred, after a vehicle collision at the Shell gas station located at 401 Enfrente Road in Novato. The suspect involved was driving the vehicle stolen earlier in Petaluma.
The occupants of the crash victims’ vehicle were transported to a hospital for medical treatment. Their vehicle caught fire, which was extinguished by Novato firefighters.
After the crash, the suspect abandoned the second stolen vehicle and proceeded to commit a third carjacking at gunpoint. Then he fled from the crash scene.
A short time later, the third carjacked vehicle was found abandoned on Montura Way in Novato.
Investigators identified McKendrick as the suspect and searched for him all night. Ground units were assisted by a Marin County Sheriff’s Office aerial drone and air support from California Highway Patrol.
Novato and San Rafael police responded with SWAT teams and K-9 units. Mill Valley and Petaluma police, along with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office also assisted.
McKendrick was apprehended on August 23 at 8:01 a.m., near Vinyard Road in a residential area of Novato. He remains in custody at Marin County Jail in lieu of $150,000 bond. His charges are –
- Kidnapping
- Robbery
- False imprisonment by violence
- Vehicle theft
- Receiving a stolen vehicle
- Carrying a loaded stolen firearm
Prior to his latest encounter with the law, McKendrick was previously arrested for alcohol/drugs DUIs, burglary, grand theft, among other offenses.
