Driver whose car was smashed in police incident gets same car stolen

Car damaged in police incident later stolen from body shop

A man's car was damaged when a suspect rammed into it while trying to evade police capture earlier this month. When he finally got his damaged car into the shop, someone stole it. The victim is an Instacart driver who relies on that service as his sole income for his family of seven.

SEATTLE - For an Instacart driver, whose car was damaged during a stolen car chase, lightning really did strike twice.

You may recall seeing some shocking video from the Ballard Fred Meyer parking lot earlier in the month, showing a shopper's car being rammed out of the way by a suspect trying to flee from police in a stolen SUV. That man was eventually arrested.

The driver of that car, Awet, finally got his damaged Prius into a body shop to get an estimate for repairs, but early Thursday morning, he says his car was stolen from the repair shop.

"I feel bad. There are a lot of things going on right now," said Awet.

FOX 13 first interviewed Awet about two weeks ago, following a wild scene where police say a man in a stolen SUV rammed his car in the Fred Meyer parking lot in Ballard.

He was inside the store, picking out an Instacart order at the time. The suspect tried to push his parked car out of the way, in order to clear a path to try to escape police.

"I was lucky. Like five minutes before, I just went into the store," said Awet.

His car, used for deliveries, provides his only source of income to care for his five children and wife.

After starting an online fundraiser to help with repairs, he brought it to Abdi Complete Auto Repair in south Seattle.

"It must have been there two weeks tomorrow," he said.

Early Thursday morning, he got a call from Seattle Police and the shop owner, explaining that someone had broken through the gate at around 2:30 am, stealing his car and others.

"I just asked the owner of the shop, and he told me they just broke the gate, and then they broke his office door, and they just took the keys, and they took the cars," said Awet.

Thursday, workers were fixing the fence and confirmed a break-in, but declined an interview.

Awet says it's unbelievable that within a month, his car was targeted twice.

"I feel bad because, within one month, two claims," said Awet.

Despite the challenges, he tries to stay positive.

"I’m just saying ‘thank God always,’" he said. "I don’t want to lose my life. That’s the more important for me. Always, God is with me, so I don’t feel that bad."

Awet says the insurance company told him that it would wait about a week to see if the car is recovered. If not, they may proceed with totaling it out. He says that might bring another set of stressors as he doesn't feel he has enough money to buy a new vehicle.

You can help Awet here.